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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27147611">The night guard and the runaway</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blazescarlet/pseuds/Blazescarlet'>Blazescarlet</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sanctuary [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Five Nights at Freddy's</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU Jack isn't like his Dayshift counterpart, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Parents, Child Neglect, Dayshift at Freddy's characters were altered in this AU, Don't mess with Goldie and his friends, Dreams and Nightmares, Emotional Manipulation, I'm Sorry, Implied Kidnapping, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Jack and Kyle have adopted Alison and Oscar, Jeremy has regrets, Kyle owns a nightclub, M/M, Manipulation, Matthew Nixon is Matthew Virginia, Mike Schmidt needs a hug, Mike has a conflicted heart, Misunderstandings, Mystery, Other, Phone Guy isn't dead, Protective Boyfriend, Protective Scott Cawthon, Protectiveness, Romance, Scott Cawthon and Phone Guy are the Same Person, Scott is Mike's godfather, Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy are jerks, Wrongful Arrest, alternative universe, conflicted feelings, guilt tripping</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-09 00:02:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>57,439</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27147611</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blazescarlet/pseuds/Blazescarlet</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Before his shift starts at the Pizzeria, Mike finds a little girl sleeping in the alleyway. He soon discovers that there's more to the girl's story then he original thought.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Animatronics &amp; Mike Schmidt (Five Nights at Freddy's), Jack Kennedy/Original Male Character, Jeremy Fitzgerald &amp; Mike Schmidt, Mike Schmidt (Five Nights at Freddy's) &amp; Original Character(s), Mike Schmidt (Five Nights at Freddy's)/Original Male Character(s), Phone Guy &amp; Mike Schmidt (Five Nights at Freddy's)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Sanctuary [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1981628</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The girl sleeping in the alleyway.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mike had gotten used to things going unexpectedly.</p><p>Between his job at the Pizzeria and his other commitments, both pleasurable and forcibly, he had no time to think up a strategy should something like was going to happen. And, that annoyed him. Mike hated it when his plans were changed at the last minute. If there was a change to any of his commissions he could make adjustments whenever he needed, though nowadays it seemed he didn't have any time to work on his art. Nowadays his time was spent working at the Pizzeria, which he didn't mind anymore since things have changed and become a lot more easier for him, and helping Jeremy in his god forsaken quest to investigate the Pizzeria and its company.</p><p>Mike had been practically roped into helping him. A few months ago he hadn't minded when Jeremy had asked him for his help. He knew that there was something going on and the company wasn't doing anything about it, instead they were deflecting and diffusing the situation and denying any wrongdoings. Cleary, there was a problem. The building had been is disarray for a number of years. The animatronics hadn't received any proper maintenance work, even poor old Foxy was in terrible condition and he hadn't been able to preform in years. The building needed to be updated and cleaned. It needed a better security system because there had been to many unfortunate incidents happening.</p><p>Needless to say there was a lot of work that needed to be done and Mike had decided to lend a helping hand in changing that. He had been told numerous time that it was a lost cause, and that it was a matter of money, but Mike was determined to set things right. So, going behind the company's back, he invested what time he could and his own personal money into the project. Of course when he told his Godfather what he was going to do Scott had instantly questioned him in the matter, stating that whilst it was a wonderful idea the money belonged to him and him alone and that he didn't have to spent it all on fixing the Pizzeria. To the man's surprise it turns out that Mike actually had a large sum of money, thanks to his commissions and his inheritance. Besides, Mike told him that he wanted to do it. Not just for him but for the kids who fell in love with Freddy's and for Scott himself - he knew just how much the Pizzeria meant to him, despite living through his own tribulations.</p><p>But, with Jeremy, things were a lot more complicated. It turns out that things were a lot more darker then they original thought. People have gone missing, both night guards and daytime workers, but on top of that there had been a few kidnappings as well. Unfortunately, those who had been kidnapped were never found. In fact they had been killed. The first group had been somewhat accidently whilst the second had resulted in the Pizzeria before this one to receive severe backlash and had resulted in the death of a Police Officer.</p><p>Mike hated thinking about it. Especially since the Police Officer in question was his boyfriend's Brother. But, what made matters worse was that when he, Jeremy and another Police Officer called Diana Winters had found out who the kidnapper and murder was. It turned out to be Mike's own Father, Vincent Schmidt. Despite everything, including the words of comfort and the uncertain promises, Mike honestly felt betrayed by the man who had become friend for a period of time before discovering the truth. He knew that Vincent wanted him back and would've done everything to bring him home, going as far as kidnapping him one time. Mike couldn't hate the man, at least now he knew the reason as to why Vincent did what he did - he needed blood for Alec, his son and Mike's brother - but he couldn't trust the man anymore and was terrified of what he could do to him.</p><p>At least now he had moved in with boyfriend and he was healing. Both of them were healing. And, Mike knew Javier would do everything in his power to protect him.</p><p>But this... this wasn't what he was expecting.</p><p>He arrived at worked at his usual time, once again Jeremy was too busy to come in even though both of them were meant to work the night shift. Mike sighed, he had meant to inform Scott about Jeremy's negligence he just hadn't found the right time to do so. Before he entered the building he could've sworn he heard somebody breathing heavily. It had come from the alleyway close by to the Pizzeria and Mike had the time to investigate. Soon enough he found the source of the problem. There was a little girl sleeping amongst the trash, she had managed to use one of the bigger pieces of cardboard to cover her body.</p><p>Mike frowned as he knelt down, wondering where she had come from and why she was sleeping near the Pizzeria. Maybe she had been waiting for someone to let her inside the building and had fallen asleep whilst she waited. He couldn't tell if she was injured but as far as he knew there was no blood on her. He saw her shiver slightly as she tried to pull the carboard over her body some more. That's not good, Mike thought. He didn't know how long she had been out her and he needed to get her inside before she freeze to death.</p><p>He tapped her gently on the shoulder. The little girl stirred and made some sort of groaning sound. A few seconds later the girl woke up, revealing a pair of blue eyes that were similar to his own.</p><p>"Hello there." Mike greeted.</p><p>"Hi." The girl replied. Her voice had been nothing more then a whisper and Mike couldn't help but wonder if she was scarred of him.</p><p>"Who are you?" He asked.</p><p>"My name's Emily." The girl told him. "Who are you? Mummy told me not to talk to strangers."</p><p>"Your Mother's smart women. I'm Mike. Mike Schmidt." Mike replied. He frowned again. If her Mother told her that then why was she at the Pizzeria so late? Was she waiting for somebody? "Why are you at the Pizzeria so late? Its almost midnight and, if somebody else found you, bad things could happen to you. Do your parents know that you are here"</p><p>Emily shook her head, Mike could've sworn he heard her sniff slightly almost like she had been crying. That, or she had a cold coming on. "They... They don't know I'm here. I... I ran away from home. They were shouting again."</p><p><em>Ah. So that was it. </em>Mike knew all to well what that was like. Before the incident with is Dad, before Javier and the Pizzeria Mike had been in a all to familiar situation. There was a time when he was living with a women called Aisha Thompson and her Daughter, Rachel. Living with Rachel had been a blessing in the dark. Despite her usual craziness Rachel had his back and was like a Sister to him, in fact she had been his only known friend for the time she was living with them. Then everything had changed when Aisha met Jonathan.</p><p>Everything was fine at first. But, one day he just changed over night, becoming more and more horrible with each passing day. At first it was just the snide comments Then a year or two later, Mike couldn't remember when he started to change, he started getting more violent.</p><p>Mike sighed. Jonathan's death was the only thing he couldn't prevent. In fact he had no part in it what so ever. Vincent had taken matters into his own hands and killed him. Mike was told that he did it for him and that nobody hurts his family. Mike shivered, sometimes he could still hear Vincent talking about that and everything else he promised him.</p><p>"Alright. Lets get you inside. Its far too cold for you to stay out here." Mike said. He helped Emily remove the cardboard and the junk that had surrounded her and help her to stand up. her He removed his blazer from his body and handed it to her. "Here. You can put this on until we get inside and afterwards if you need it. It might be a bit too big for you but it better than nothing."</p><p>Emily accepted it with a smile. Mike help her put it on before guiding her inside, he locked the doors behind them once he passed through the threshold. When he turned to face her Emily gave him a strange look and asked him why he locked the door. He told her that it was to prevent people from getting inside the building. Technically, after midnight there lives weren't in danger - not anymore at least - but somebody could break in and try to rob the place and there was always a possibility that they could get hurt. Mike promised her that he would protect if something like that happened.</p><p>Mike moved towards the door leading into the main party room. Just before he could open the door he heard Emily whimpering behind him. He turned around and saw her standing in the lit area. There were tears coming out of her eyes. He walked over to her knelt down in front of her.</p><p>"Are you alright?" He asked.</p><p>"Um... I don't like the dark." Emily admitted.</p><p>"Sorry, Emily. I should've asked you first." Mike apologised as he wiped away the tears. "Don't worry we have something special installed in the main party room for something like this. Take my hand and stay close to me. I'll guide you."</p><p>He stood up and offer her his right hand. Emily gladly accepted it. Mike guided the child into the main party room and turned to the light switches. He moved towards the box and pressed the third switch. He heard Emily gasp as a collection of lights lit up on the celling. That had been one of his ideas as well, though the light had been installed quite recently. It was for last years Halloween party and, whilst Freddy's had done nothing special in the past, Scott decided to change that and have the first ever Halloween party at Freddy's. Everything had to be perfect. The ambience, the food, the drinks, the performances, the treat trail.</p><p>Mike had suggested the idea of having fairy lights dangling from the celling. That way the children could still run around and enjoy the festivities whist being under safe lighting, and the Pizzeria would have the perfect ambience for the evening.</p><p>"Wow!" Emily exclaimed.</p><p>"Like it?" The redhead asked.</p><p>"I love it!" Emily proclaimed. "Its so pretty!"</p><p>Mike couldn't contain his own excitement when he saw Emily running around the place. He was used to praise like this now but it still refreshing whenever someone new noticed his work.</p><p>There again did Emily know about the changes?</p><p>Mike frowned as he recalled the conversation they had outside. She had run away from home because her parents were arguing again. No child should hear there parents arguing with each other and, by the looks of things, this was a recurrence. That probably meant Emily was running away from home a lot. If that the case then what were her parents arguing about? Were they aware of Emily running away in the first place?</p><p>Or, maybe they didn't care about her. Mike didn't want to think about it but there was always the possibility that Emily was being neglected, maybe that's why she ran away from home. They would've found her by now if they were looking for her. Perhaps they didn't care that she was missing.</p><p>"Mikey!"</p><p>Mike froze upon hearing that nickname. Panic filled his body as he was started looking around the room rapidly. There was only one man who called him by that name. Did he finally find him? Hadn't he and Javier been careful choosing where to live? It had to be close to the Pizzeria but also some where Vincent would never find him. He... He was going to get kidnapped again, wasn't he? He didn't want to go back. Where was Javi? He needs...</p><p>Mike felt somebody tackle into him, instantly knocking him to the ground. Tiny hands were gripping his work shirt as he heard somebody say he name gently. It sounded young and feminine. Slowly, he taking a few deep breaths in order to calm himself down. Vincent was not here, Mike told himself. He was fine and he had a little girl to watch over. He turned to left and saw Emily looking at him.</p><p>"What's wrong, Emily?" The night guard asked.</p><p>"I... I saw something move over there." Emily replied, pointing towards the stage.</p><p>Mike turned to look where Emily was pointing. He saw a tall purple rabbit walk of stage as a yellow chicken and a brown bear active for the night. Ah right, he probably should've told her about that.</p><p>"Its okay. Its just my friends." Mike told her.</p><p>"Friends?" Emily questioned.</p><p>"I should have told you earlier. You see in order to have the animatronics available for preforming in the morning they have to go through what we at Freddy's call a 'free roam mode' which allows them to walk around the place at night. Without it there servos would lock up if they were turned of for far to long and they wouldn't be able to preform in the morning." Mike explained.</p><p>That was the condense version of the mode. Before the upgrades and becoming sentient they were still roaming around but it was a lot more different then what was happening now. Back then it was game of cat and mouse with the night guard's life as the winning prize. The animatronics were behaving strangely, they would stare at the camera and try and get inside the office. Sometimes he could hear Freddy or Goldie laughing or Chica in the kitchen making a mess, or Foxy humming.</p><p>Now that they have been upgraded Mike didn't have to worry about the animatronics anymore. They were now friends and they had helped him, Jeremy and Diana with their investigation. In fact they had been the key to solving several disappearances that took place at Freddy years ago. They were the reason as to why the night guards were disappearing at night. It wasn't there fault, however.</p><p>Firstly, they didn't know the difference between a person and a endoskeleton, they thought they were the same and that the endoskeletons didn't have their costumes on which was against the rules at Freddy's. Secondly, they were being control by another animatronic called the Marionette. The Marionette had taken away their memories away and was forcing them to look for the night guard. Thirdly, and this was the reason as to so many night guards went missing, they were looking for a murderer.</p><p>After the first group had been murdered their spirits had been found by the Marionette. He had offered them 'life' and in exchange they would help him, after all there was only so much one <em>person</em> could do on there own. The younger children were unsure and they looked towards the oldest for guidance. Gerald, the oldest of the group, was unsure himself but he could see the desire in their eyes and decided to accept the puppet's offer. However, what he didn't tell them was that their new bodies were going to be the animatronics. That, and they didn't know what the murderer looked like.</p><p>Eventually, the rabbit noticed him. He walked over to him just as Mike was sitting up.</p><p>"Heya Mike!" The rabbit greeted. "Why are you on the floor?"</p><p>"Somebody knocked me down." Mike told him. He felt Emily grip his shirt again. "Its alright. There not going to hurt you. They love children."</p><p>That's when the rabbit noticed Emily. "Mike, why is there a child here at night?"</p><p>"I'll explain later." Mike replied. He then turned to face the girl again. "Emily, these are my friends. The rabbit is Bonnie, the chicken is Chica and the bear is Freddy."</p><p>"I know who they are, silly." Emily said with a giggle. "I just couldn't see them properly."</p><p>…Right, that makes sense. That, and she had been to the Pizzeria before so she probably knew what they looked like as well. Whatever, it was too early in the morning to question her.</p><p>"Aw! Well, aren't you adorable?" Chica cooed.</p><p>Mike blinked, finally noticing Emily hugging Chica. She moved on and hug Bonnie and Freddy as well. It looked like she was becoming friends with them fast. The animatronics were always friendly with children. It had been that like for long time and they were still getting used to new faces and adults. There again they had been children once themselves so it wouldn't be too hard to make friends with others. Maybe that just carried over to their new bodies.</p><p><em>"I still need to find away of freeing the children from those bodies." </em>Mike thought. <em>"Not just them but the others too. I wonder if Scott and Uncle Fran have managed to find the Toys yet."</em></p><p>Mike felt someone touch his shoulder. He turned his head to the right and saw Freddy looking him.</p><p>"I need to talk to you." The bear told him. "Its about our little night guest here."</p><p>Mike nodded. He then turned his attention back to Emily who was talking to Bonnie and Chica. "Say, Chica. Why don't you and Emily go see Captain Foxy? He should be awake by now."</p><p>"Good idea, Mike." Chica said. "Afterwards we can go to kitchen. I think we spare one of my special cupcakes."</p><p>"Really? Thank you, Ms Chica." Emily replied.</p><p>"No problem, sweetie." Chica said. "Come on. Its this way."</p><p>They watched as Emily took Chica's hand and was guided towards the door leading to Pirate's Cove.</p><p>"What's going on, Mike?" Freddy asked. "Why is Emily here so late at night?"</p><p>"To be honest, Fred, I'm not enterally sure myself." Mike admitted. "I found her sleeping in the alleyway besides the Pizzeria. She didn't tell me much but she did tell me that she had runaway from home because her parents were arguing again."</p><p>"Again? So, this has been going on for long time?" Bonnie questioned</p><p>"Maybe. Its hard to tell without learning the full story." Mike replied. "Although, I do think her parents are being neglectful. I don't know how long she has been out here for but she would have been found now if her parents were looking for her. That, or they don't know that Emily has runaway from home again. I'll ask Scott to check the cameras in the morning."</p><p>"Is there anything else we should know?" Freddy inquired.</p><p>"She doesn't like the dark, which is why I turned the fairy lights on." Mike told him. "But, other than what I already told you, there's nothing else."</p><p>"So, there not a lot to go on, is there?" Freddy commented.</p><p>They moved towards the stage. Mike and Freddy sat down in the chairs closets to the stage whilst Bonnie picked up his guitar and went to sit down on the stage. Just before he started to it, however, he finally noticed that the room was short one person. Now that the Pizzeria had finally been updated the building was now vulnerable so Scott had decided to hire another night guard. The second night guard was none other then Jeremy Fitzgerald who, apparently, was a friend of Mike's and he had worked in the Pizzeria before this one.</p><p>"Where's Jeremy? Should he be here as well?" Bonnie asked.</p><p>Mike sighed. "Jeremy's too busy working on his so called investigation."</p><p>"Again? I thought you were finished with it after..." Bonnie trailed off, not wanting to bring up the past. They were aware of the investigation and, now that they had their memories back, they were aware of what happened to them. Despite that they had all agree to let the past stay in the past and move on. They couldn't change what happened to them, although they were somewhat understanding of the circumstances that lead to there deaths.</p><p>Besides, they all knew that Mike was still hurting after what had happened to him. They didn't want to give him anymore pain</p><p>Mike silently thanked the rabbit for not going any further. Instead he told him. "After... finding out what really happened twelve years ago we discovered that there was more to Fazbear entertainment then any of us realised. Jeremy decided to investigate the company and he thinks he onto something. I asked him if he was going to come tonight but he told me he's too busy."</p><p>"That's not an excuse! He has a job to do and its unfair to make you do all the work." Freddy protested.</p><p>"Try telling him that." Mike remarked. "Besides, its not like its a difficult job anymore. Everything changed after the upgrades and you guys are no longer trying to kill me."</p><p>"That's not the point, Mike. Jeremy has done this before so he knows what its like to work the night shift. And, the building is a high risk of being broken into. You can't be expected to be the only one looking after the place." Freddy countered. "Besides, and I hate to bring this up Mike, but what happens if Vincent comes back? I know myself and the others can protect you but what about Emily? Having her here is just as risky as having you here alone."</p><p>Mike wanted to protest, really he did, but he knew Freddy was right. It wasn't safe for him to work at Freddy's anymore and, just by having Emily here as well, it wasn't safe for her either. More measures needed to be done in order to protect the Pizzeria, to protect them. But, nobody knew what Vincent was planning. They hadn't heard anything from the murderer in a while. Either he was planning something big or he was working on building his so called empire - whatever that means.</p><p>Mike needed to have a word with Scott in the morning, that's if there was enough time to talk to the Phone Guy before the cleaning staff entered the building. Sure, they could always talk in his office but Mike would prefer it if nobody knew about Emily or anything else for that matter. There was no need to cause panic, especially since nobody knows what will happen next. With Emily, however, it was more of a private matter. He didn't know much about her and he didn't want to make any assumptions without knowing the facts. He could tell that there was something wrong but he wanted to know more before making any judgements.</p><p>Hopefully, whatever the problem was, they could deal with it before they received anymore bad news. However, Mike had a feeling that things were a lot more worse then what he original thought.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. She makes an impression</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Upon entering the room Emily could barely keep her excitement in. As one expects with the name like Pirate's cove the entire room had a pirate theme. The walls had been painted to look like the exterior of a pirate ship with the sea and a few lands in the background, the celling had been painted to look like the sky and the floor looked like an island. There was a replica of a pirate ship, which was big enough for the children to play on, and a few small stands that looked like waves were around it. The ship was behind purple curtains with stars on them. The was a wooden box filed with swords and cutlass - all fake, of course, and there were pirate hats hanging up on the wall.</p><p>There were also a few wooden tables and chairs as well, they were over by the walls and out of the way whenever the kids were running around. They were mostly used whenever Foxy was tell the kids about his adventures, or if there were parents in the room watching there children. There again the kids preferred sitting up front rather then sitting down in the chairs so it was the parents who ended up using them.</p><p>"This is where Foxy does his shows. His stage used to be a part of the main party room." Chica told Emily as she was surveying the room. "Before Mike started his project he and Scott discovered this room behind Foxy's old show stage, which was much smaller then this room. They decided to move Foxy into here and have this room become the new Pirate's Cove."</p><p>"Is he a real Pirate?" Emily asked.</p><p>"As real as they get, I suppose. But, he is still kind to the kids. He practically invites them to re-enact his adventures." Chica replied. She had been taken aback by that question. She hadn't seen a real pirate before, she was certain that they didn't exist. However, when Foxy did his performances he kept it as real as possible whilst still being gentle with the children. She had always wondered how he managed to do that. "Why do you ask?"</p><p>"Daddy says they don't exist and, if they do, then they are lowlifes." Emily replied sadly. "He said some nasty words when I asked about it and told me to grow up."</p><p>"That's not very nice." Chica said. Whatever these nasty words Chica had a feeling that they weren't suppose to be said in front of children. Even the adults had to be careful whenever they were around the children. That's when she recalled the rest of the conversation. She was told to grow up. What a horrible thing to say to a little girl... How old was she? Mike didn't tell her much about Emily, other then her name. "Emily, how old are you?"</p><p>"I'm Six." Emily told her. "Too old to keep playing silly games."</p><p>"But, your still a child, Emily. Its okay to play make believe with the other children." Chica replied. "It allows us to become more creative and, for someone like Foxy who loves to tell stories, it allows us to play with the other children. We can understand each other interests and see what we like and what we don't like."</p><p>"...If you say so, Ms Chica." Emily said.</p><p>Chica didn't know what to say. Was Emily hiding something from her? She sounded a little upset when she brought up that conversation she had wither her Dad. But, was there more to it then that? Chica wanted to ask her but she didn't know where to start.</p><p>"Ahoy there!"</p><p>"Foxy!" Emily cheered.</p><p>Chica was honestly glad that there was a distraction. She turned around just in time to see Emily running up to Foxy. She was picked up and spun around before placing her on the floor. It was quite surprising seeing Foxy reacting like that but there again Foxy - <em>Felix</em> - had always been hyperactive so maybe he was just used to it by now. That, and Foxy loved it when the kids gave him special attention. That had been down to the years of neglect and he hadn't been able to preform like the others.</p><p>"Well now, this is a nice surprise." Foxy said. "What brings ye here kid?"</p><p><em>"Typical Foxy. Its night now but he still treats every interaction like he's preforming." </em>Chica thought.</p><p>"Mikey said it was too cold for me to stay outside and he brought me in." Emily told the Fox.</p><p>"He... He did, did he?" Foxy questioned.</p><p>He was looking at Chica, knowing that she would have the full story. Not only that but there was also the use of that <em>nickname. </em>Mike didn't like that nickname, at least not anymore, because it brought back too many bad memories. In fairness he was the only one in there little group who used to call him that but after the incident a few months ago he had stopped calling him that. He could only imagine how Mike would react upon hearing the girl saying that <em>nickname</em>.</p><p>Chica, however, shook her head in response. She didn't know why Emily was at the Pizzeria so late at night.</p><p>"Yeah. He's really nice and he gave me his blazer to wear." Emily said, breaking the silent conversation the Fox and the Chicken were having.</p><p>"He is, is he? He's the one who helped me reclaim my cove." Foxy proclaimed.</p><p>"Did he?"</p><p>Chica decided to intervene before the conversation went out of hand. "He helped paint the set, the walls and the celling. Everything else was either already in here or approved by our manager. Mike did, however, help Foxy with his new look."</p><p>That last part was true. It was the only part of Pirate's Cove that was missing, having an actual Pirate Captain be present in the cove. Foxy had been programmed to preform like a pirate but there was no resemblance to actual pirates. A part from the hook and the eye patch Foxy just looked like another animatronic. Mike suggested to have Foxy 'dress up' as a Pirate. Fashion wasn't his forte but with a little help from Scott and Javier's Sister, not to mention the hours of pirate movies he had watched (that was Javier's fault), he had managed to come up with Foxy's new look.</p><p>Foxy was wearing a dark blue coat with gold chains and epaulettes, a puffy sleeved white shirt, a brown strap with a gold buckle and brown breeches. On his head was black a tri-cornered hat with a fox head and cutlass in the middle and a white feather attached to it. His endoskeleton had been fixed too. His jaw was no longer loose and the exposed parts had been cover up with red fur. His hook had been replaced and was exchanged for a clean one. The only thing he was missing was a parrot but Scott decided against it.</p><p>"So, do ye have a name, lass?" Foxy asked.</p><p>"My name's Emily." She told him.</p><p>"Emily, is it? Lovely name, lass." Foxy complimented. "Would ye like a tour of my ship, lass?"</p><p>"Really?" Emily said. Though, as soon as she said it, the sudden interest vanished instantly. She looked down, crestfallen, and bit the corner of her lip. She was fiddling with her hands. It looked like she contemplating something. "I wouldn't want to break anything..."</p><p>"There no need to worry, Emily. There's nothing of value on that ship. Its a playhouse." Chica said.</p><p>"A playhouse?" Emily said.</p><p>"Yes. According to Mike its some kind of theatre. Foxy uses it when he doing story time but children are allowed to go on it as long as they are careful." Chica explained. "Have you ever been to a playground before, Emily?"</p><p>"No. Mummy doesn't let me go outside a lot. She says its too dangerous." Emily replied. "She keeps me in all day and gives me these nice clothes. Most of them are dresses and I'm not allowed to get them ruined. But, I don't want to wear them. I want to go out and play with the other children."</p><p>Chica and Foxy exchanged a look with each other. There was something not right about all of this.</p><p>"Lass, have you ever been to Freddy's before?" Foxy inquired.</p><p>"Only once. A few months ago one of my classmates was having a birthday party at Freddy's. Everybody was invited. I told my parents by they didn't want to let me go. Daddy didn't want to spend the day around noisy brats and mummy said she was busy all day." Emily replied. "They both had work that day and they couldn't find a babysitter for me so they let me go. I was one of the last kids to leave. Both of my parents work late so the Mother of the birthday girl stayed with me until Mummy picked me up."</p><p>"What about your friends? Surely, you must have some friends you could of stayed with?" Chica questioned.</p><p>"I... I don't have any friends, Ms Chica." Emily said.</p><p>It was nothing more then a whisper but Chica and Foxy heard her. They exchanged a look with each other, wondering where to go next. They could press on and ask Emily to clarify but, if they did that then they could only upset her further - and they didn't want that. Even then they didn't know the full story. It could just be that Emily had trouble making friends. Or, maybe nobody wanted to be friends with her.</p><p>They would have to ask Mike about it. In the meantime there were other things they could do to cheer Emily up.</p><p>Foxy walked over to the girl and knelt down in front of her. "We can be your friends, lass."</p><p>"R-really?" Emily asked.</p><p>"Of course. We are a tight knit group, the six of us. We would be glad to have you as our friend." Foxy replied.</p><p>Foxy opened his arms out and hugged Emily. Naturally, Emily returned it. She couldn't believe it. She made her first real friend! Her first real friend group even. She was certain the others would want to be friends with as well.</p><p>"Thanks, Foxy. Your the best." Emily said.</p><p>"No problem, lass." Foxy replied. "Come one, I'll give ye a tour of my ship."</p><p>The fox stood up and offered Emily his hand. Emily accepted it. Foxy asked Chica if she was going to join them but the chicken decline the offer. She told them she was going to the kitchen for something. It wasn't a complete lie, she was going to grab one of her special cupcakes for Emily, but she needed to talk to Mike. He needed to hear what Emily said to her and Foxy.</p><hr/><p>It was no surprise to Chica that she found Mike still in the main party room. Technically, night guards were suppose to stay in the office but as long as Mike had the tablet with him at all times he was free to go whenever he wanted. Besides they were all friends at this point and they weren't trying to kill him so there was no need for him to hide in the security office. There again it would be the perfect hiding place in case any other nightly intruders.</p><p>Bonnie was sitting on the stage playing his guitar and Freddy was reading a book. Its funny. Despite everything nothing has change over the course of the years. Bonnie was playing his guitar and carrying out practical jokes. Freddy was still reading and still had his intelligence. He still had trouble with his eye sight though, that's why Mike used to have difficultly finding him in the dark. Foxy was just as energetic as ever and she still used to cook ever so often. Now if only she could talk Scott into have a Princess day...</p><p>Although, and really she should be used to it by now, there was a gold bear talking to Mike. His name is Goldie. He almost looked like Freddy. However, there were minor differences between the two bears. Goldie's top hat and bow tie were dark blue whilst Freddy's hat and bow tie were black. According to Scott Goldie used to be animatronic like them. Many years ago there was a time when Goldie was called Fredbear. He used to preform at a small diner with another animatronic called Spring Bonnie - He was a gold rabbit. But, that was a long time ago and Goldie had changed over the years.</p><p>Despite that he managed to help Mike and the others. It turns out that Goldie had the answers they were looking for. Well, for the most part. He told them that they didn't their memories and they don't remember what happened to them. That had been a vital clue in solving their mystery as they were the first group of missing children. Goldie himself didn't have his own memories but he tried guiding his friends in the right direction. Unfortunately, that didn't go so well...</p><p>"You still haven't been able to locate them?" Mike inquired.</p><p><em><strong>"No. The only thing Scott told us was that they had been moved to a warehouse until further notice. The warehouse was owned by Fazbear entertainment but they never gave him the location of it."</strong></em> Goldie replied.</p><p>"What was the warehouse used for?" Mike asked. "Other then storing animatronics, I mean."</p><p><strong><em>"According to Scott Fazbear Entertainment used the warehouse to store a number of items that were from previous locations. Most of it was just generic items but there were a large collection of documents, newspapers, blueprints and some other things. Some of the stuff in there would be transferred to the new building instead of using new items."</em></strong> Goldie explained as best as he could. <strong><em>"Apparently, the Toys weren't the only animatronics stored there. There were other variations of the original four as well."</em></strong></p><p>"Wait a minute! There are other versions of us out there!" Bonnie cried.</p><p><strong><em>"Did you think you were the only ones? "</em> </strong>Goldie asked instead. <strong><em>"There are various Freddy locations out there, Bonnie. Not just the 'New and Improved Freddy's', or the 'Original restaurant'. And, none of them are the same. They have different themes, different layouts, different animatronics. There's one call 'Freddy's rock n roll auditorium' and the animatronics they have there have a Rockstar theme."</em></strong></p><p>"Really? How fascinating." Freddy commented.</p><p><em>"That does sound fascinating..." </em>Mike thought. He couldn't help but wonder just how many Freddy locations there were. Were they just like this one or did they need to be cleaned up. Had there been any trouble over the years or was it free from sabotage? What were the animatronics like? Were they in good condition or did they need to be repaired?</p><p>And, yet, something about all of this troubled him.</p><p>With Vincent still out there was there a possibility that he was still continuing his work? There was no need for any more children to go missing. Alec was all better now so Vincent didn't need to kill any more children. However, he could still kidnapped and murder any children, or adults for that matter, and put all the blame on the Freddy's location. He didn't know what the security measures were like at these locations so there was always a possibility that he could bypass these measures and continue with his work. And, it didn't have to be kidnapping or murder either. There was always sabotage, damaging property, tampering with the animatronics. Vincent was capable of doing anything.</p><p>"Uh... You don't suppose my D... Uh... Vincent has been to any of those location, do you?" Mike questioned.</p><p><strong><em>"Possibly. If Vincent is still carrying out this personal vendetta of his then he might of visited these different locations. A new location means a new identity, and he has managed to get away with all of this for years." </em></strong>Goldie replied.<strong><em> "If that's the case then we should be prepared to deal with the aftermath. I can't do what the Marionette's did with our spirits but I can guide them in the right direction. The last thing we need is anymore possessed animatronics."</em></strong></p><p>Chica decided to step in before the conversation went down a certain path.</p><p>"Mike, could I talk to you?" She asked.</p><p>"Sure, Chica." Mike replied. "What's up? Is there a problem with Emily?</p><p>"It does concern her but she's not in any trouble at the moment. She's with Foxy." Chica said. "We did hear some pretty concern things, though. Emily doesn't have any friends."</p><p>"None at all?" Mike questioned.</p><p>"None. Although, Foxy did say that we would all become friends." Chica confirmed.</p><p>"But she knows about us, though. She must have been here with some somebody." Bonnie pointed out.</p><p>"There was a birthday party a few months ago, it was before our upgrades so she didn't know about our sentience back then. Apparently, everybody in the class was invited to it. Emily told her parents about it but they didn't want to let her go." Chica explained. "However, both of her parents had work that day and they couldn't find a babysitter for her so she was allowed to go. She was one of last people to leave the building that day."</p><p>"Did they forget to pick her up?" Mike inquired.</p><p>"No. Both of her parents were working late so the Mother of the birthday girl offered to stay with her until one of her parents were able to pick her up." Chica told him.</p><p>"That is concerning." Mike commented. "Anything else?"</p><p>"There was one other thing..." Chica replied. "Emily doesn't have a good relationship with her parents. Her Mother practically treats her like a porcelain doll. She has all these nice clothes and she's not allowed to get them dirty. I don't think Emily likes any of that, though. She wants to be kid and interact with others, she wants to get her hands dirty. I think Foxy might be her favourite because she was talking about pirates when I told her about Pirate's Cove."</p><p>"I think she was wearing her pajamas when she came in. She sleeping with the remains of a cardboard box over her so she couldn't have that much warmth on her already. And, I did give her my blazer." Mike recalled. "What about her Father?"</p><p>"She doesn't see him very often and, when she does, he's not very nice to her. He belittles her, sometimes he says horrible words in her presence and he has told her to grow up. She's only six years old, Mike. No child should be treated like that." Chica told him.</p><p>Mike couldn't help but agree with her, knowing full well what it was to be treated like that. It seemed that his early suspicions were correct. There was more to Emily's story then he first thought. Both of her parents were treating her differently. Her Mother was being over protective and wasn't allowing her to play with the other children, or make friends with them. Without having that basic interaction Emily would have trouble developing her social skills. She needs to have that interaction or she will have problems in the future.</p><p>Then there was Emily's father... Despite not seeing it himself, Mike knew that whoever Emily's father was he was emotional abusing his kid. He was treating her horribly and he shouldn't be anywhere near Emily. Perhaps that was the real reason as to why Emily keeps running away. She was getting away from him because he keeps mistreating her. What about Emily's Mother? Did she know about this or was she allowing this to happened?</p><p>"It seems to me that she lives a very sheltered life with some elements of abuse and neglect." Mike summarised.</p><p><strong><em>"Who's Emily?</em></strong>" Goldie asked.</p><p>"Oh, right You weren't here earlier when I came in." Mike said. "Emily is the little girl I found sleeping outside. She told me she runaway from home and I brought her inside, its far too cold for her to be out there."</p><p>Goldie nodded. "<em><strong>I thought I sensed the presence of a child. You did the right thing in bring her in, Michael. Although, since Vincent is still out there, do you think Emily is safe here?"</strong></em></p><p>"I know what you mean, Goldie. Freddy told me the same thing." Mike said. "She's is safe here tonight. If she's spending time with Foxy then he's bound to protect her should somebody break into the Pizzeria. I will be informing Scott about this. Also, I need to know what time Emily came to the building and how long she has been out there for. If Emily's parents know she's running away and they aren't coming to look for her then we need to make a decision on what to do with her. We can't have her living on her own."</p><p>"<strong><em>Wise decision." </em></strong>Goldie said.</p><p>"So, what are you going to do with her?" Bonnie asked. "Can she stay here with us?"</p><p>"Emily can't stay here, Bonnie. She need somewhere to sleep and live until Mike and Scott find her parents." Freddy told him.</p><p>"But, but, she can sleep in Pirate's Cove. We can entertain her and Chica can cook her meals." Bonnie protested.</p><p>Freddy sighed. "Bonnie, I know you mean well but she can't stay here all day and all night. She needs to be in a secure environment. Besides, we are pretty busy during the day and we have a handful of children to interact with on a daily basis. Emily wouldn't be left on her own per say but she might not want to interact with the other child. And, it would be wrong of us to put her in a situation where she is uncomfortable."</p><p>Mike didn't think the Animatronics would get so attached to Emily so soon. It was sweet of them to consider her as a friend, even more so that they wanted her to live with them. But, Freddy was right. Emily can't stay here. It wouldn't be a problem during the day as a responsible adult would be watching her. But, at night time Emily needs to sleep and, know his animatronic friends - Bonnie especially - she wouldn't be able to get some sleep. Part of him hoped it wouldn't take too long to find her parents. He didn't want her to go back but he needed to hear from them. He wanted to know why they have been abusing their child.</p><p>Perhaps he should talk to Scott about this. He would know what to do next.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Just another day in paradise.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mike was anxiously waiting in the main party room. He had sent a text message to Scott asking him to come in early. He tried not to make it demanding. Scott had a family of his own and he knew it would it take time getting ready for the day. Knowing Scott once he saw the message he would drop everything he was doing and drive straight to the Pizzeria. That's why he sent a second one after the first, telling him not to rush once he saw the first message.</p><p>It wasn't a matter of life and death. Yes, he needed to see his godfather before anyone else came to the Pizzeria, but there was enough time for them to talk before anyone else entered the building. He hoped Scott had the answers he was looking for. Mike wanted to help her but he knew he would have to go down the proper channels in order to help her.</p><p>Emily was sleeping in Pirate's cove. She went to sleep at about 4am and, even then, they had to make up a bed for her. Chica had managed to find some blankets in the storage closet. It wasn't much but it was better then nothing. Mike went one step further and offered her a choice of which plushie she wanted to sleep with. Emily picked the Foxy plush. After that Emily was tucked up in her little blanket bed and Freddy played his music box for her.</p><p>Its strange. He didn't think the animatronics would get so attached to Emily so quickly. He had been surprised when Bonnie said that Emily could stay with them. Maybe they just wanted to protect her. They didn't want to make the same mistakes as they did before. When Mike had asked them about it, it was actually to do with the Toy animatronics. They were meant to protect children and the Toys had something better then what they had. Access to a criminal database. However, just like everything else at Freddy's, the Toys had been tampered with and they started behaving differently. They were fine around the children but they kept staring at the adults.</p><p>"Mike?"</p><p>The redhead turned around. Standing by the door was a man in his mid forties with chocolate brown hair and hazel eyes. On his left check there was small scar and around his mouth was light facial hair. His outfit was similar to Mike's. He was wearing a blue shirt and trousers, a black blazer and a tie and on his feet were black shoes. Even though Scott was the manager of the place now he still wore his work uniform. Somethings never change, Mike thought.</p><p>"I came as soon as could." Scott said, walking over to the redhead. "What's wrong, Mike? Did someone break in last night?"</p><p>"No. Everything fine, Scott." Mike replied. "Although, we did have a little visitor."</p><p>"A visitor?" Scott questioned. "Who?"</p><p>"I'll take you to her. She's sleeping in Pirates' cove." Mike said.</p><p><em>She. </em>Scott frowned as he followed Mike into Pirate's cove, wondering what exactly happened this time. He followed Mike towards the pirate ship and, sure enough, there was a little girl sleeping on the deck. There were a white blanket over her body, underneath her body and her head. There was a Foxy plush in the child's arms. Slowly, as to not to disturb her, Scott walked away and joined Mike on the floor.</p><p>"Her name is Emily." Mike revealed. "She told me she ran away from home and she was sleeping outside until I showed up."</p><p>"She ran away. Why would she do that? Its far too dangerous out there for a little girl her age. " Scott questioned.</p><p>It was easy for the man to go into over protective mode. Scott had two kids, a son and a daughter by the names of Robert and Alice. He wold never forgive himself if anything happened to one of his kids. And, since he worked at Freddy's where kids have gone missing, he never allowed them near the building unless he was already inside. Perhaps it was a little bit too much but Scott wanted to protect his children. Especially since Freddy's had a history of kidnapping and murder.</p><p>What made matters worse was that he was friends with said kidnapper and murderer. That, and Vincent made him Mike's godfather. Looking back on it Scott had always thought that Vincent would make Blake, Jeremy's father, Mike's godfather because they were best friends - its how Mike and Jeremy ended up as friends. But they had gotten into a argument about the type of movies they watch and which one was better. Eventually, they did make-up, at the request of Mrs Schmidt, but Vincent didn't change his decision.</p><p>"To be honest I don't know what really happened. The only things she told me was that she ran away from home and that she doesn't like the dark. Chica and Foxy were able to get more information out of her then I did." Mike told him.</p><p>"What did they find out?" Scott asked.</p><p>"Well, to start with, Emily is six years old - she's the same age as Alison. Her parents treat her differently. Her Mother shows her with all of these dresses and she keeps her inside all day. And, as for her her Father... well, he treats her horribly." Mike explained. "As far as I aware there is no physical violence going on but he does belittle her and says some horrible words in her presence. I guessing those words are swear words. "</p><p>"I see. And, I'm guessing you asked me to come in early so that we can discus what to do next?" Scott said.</p><p>Mike nodded. "Yes. I want to help her but I know you have to go through the right channels in order to help a runaway. Especially since that runaway is a child."</p><p>"That's right. We'll have to inform the police about this."</p><p>"Will they listen to us, though? They might think there has been another incident at Freddy's." Mike questioned.</p><p>"Hmm. You might be right there. Well, if that does happened then I'll inform runaway helpline. They will know what to do next." Scott replied.</p><p>Mike nodded. At least they had a plan now. </p><p>"So, what are we going to do with her in the meantime? We open soon and I believe Foxy's going to be busy all day." Mike inquired. "There's nobody to look after her."</p><p>"Your right, Mike. Well, why don't you take her home with you? She seems to trust you and I know you would never hurt another kid, not after what you been through." Scott suggested.</p><p>"Are you sure? They might think I've kidnapped her." Mike questioned.</p><p>"If that does happened then you'll have to explain the situation. But, we we are busy all day there's no one else to look after her. Besides she might not like to be in an environment like this one. Some kids don't like noisy environments." Scott replied.</p><p>"Right. Oh, and one more thing. Can you check the security footage for last night? Emily was already here when I showed up and that could help our case if anybody questions us." Mike said.</p><p>"Of course." Scott said.</p><p>He was going to do that anyway. Mike was practically under his protection as well and he didn't want to put anymore stress onto his Godson. When Javier had saved Mike the redhead told them and his uncle everything that had happened to him. Needless to say the whole experience had frightened him and both he and Fran had been enraged by what Mike told them - He more so then Fran but only because Fran had been more shocked then enraged. Vincent was there friend, he loved his sons more then anything, but he abducted Mike because he refused to run away with him - Well, Mike said that Vincent wanted him to come home with him but he was still kidnapped.</p><p>Speaking of checking the camera, Scott didn't see Jeremy when he entered the building and followed Mike into Pirate's cove.</p><p>"Say, Mike, where's Jeremy?" Scott inquired.</p><p>Mike sighed. "Jeremy said he had something else to do. He said he was working on his investigation."</p><p>Scott frowned at this new information. Whilst he knew Jeremy was trying to investigate the Pizzeria, he had job to do and there was nothing stopping him continuing his work during the night shift.</p><p>"How long has this been going on?" Scott asked.</p><p>"Ever since... Well, you know what." Mike replied. He really didn't like talking about the kidnapping incident. He still had nightmares about it. "And, even then, Jeremy had been going rouge before the incident happened."</p><p>"That is concerning." Scott commented.</p><p>The manager sighed. Jeremy can't keep doing this. Not with Vincent still out there. If he came back... Well, the animatronics would protect Mike but if Vincent had a weapon on him then they would stand no chance. The most logical thing to do would be to move Mike onto the dayshift, it was either that or telling Mike to stop working at Freddy's, but Mike didn't want people being overprotective of him. It was bad enough he, Fran and Javier kept doing it. But Mike wanted to keep working and Scott could tell that he was just trying to get things back to normal.</p><p>It was an act. A shield to keep people away from what he was feeing. He only broke down those walls for certain people.</p><p>"I might have to move Jeremy onto the dayshift if he keeps this us. Maybe I'll put him on the Prize corner and ask Matt to work the night shift instead." Scott said.</p><p>"Oh, he's going to hate you if you do that." Mike snickered.</p><p>"So? Maybe he should do his job. That way I won't move him onto the dayshift." Scott chuckled.</p><p><em>He does have a point there. Maybe I should talk to Jeremy again, see If I can't convince him to come back to Freddy's." </em>Mike thought.<em> "There again I wouldn't mind Matt working the night shift."</em></p><p>"Anyway." Scott said once he finished laughing. "I think its time you went home, Mike. If you stay here any longer you'll too tired to drive home."</p><p>"Your right." Mike agreed. "Thank you for coming in early, Scott."</p><p>Scott nodded. "Take care, Mike. And, be careful out there."</p><p>"Will do." Mike said. He went over to the pirate ship and picked up Emily of the floor. "Bye, Scott."</p><p>"Bye, Mike."</p>
<hr/><p>Javier Jones was just waking up for the day. He missed having somebody sleeping beside him but he respected Mike's decision to carrying on working, even if it was the night shift. It couldn't be helped. He would've preferred it if Mike worked the dayshift, that way somebody could keep an eye on him, but Scott would have to move somebody onto the night shift and Mike didn't want the hassle. Besides the animatronics trusted Mike and to some extent Jeremy as well.</p><p><em>Jeremy. </em>When they were talking about the brunette Mike had told him everything about Jeremy. Apparently, they had been childhood friends but Mike barely remembered everything that happened when they were younger. Jeremy was only three years older then Mike and he treated him like a brother. If that's the case then he would've been respectful of Mike's boundaries and wouldn't have pushed him when he wanted to know about the abuse Mike went through. He would've have been one of the first people to go after Mike when he was kidnapped.</p><p>He should've been there for Mike but he wasn't.</p><p>Javier sighed, Just thinking about brothers made him miss his own brother. Carlos Jones was a police officer and he was assigned to the Fazbear case when nobody else took it. According to his brother the case was cursed from the start because nobody had any luck with it - Now, of course, he knew why. But Carlos had been determined, even with his new partner, he was going to solve this case. But, sadly, his brother hadn't been so lucky. Javier didn't understand why his brother never arrested the murderer when he had the chance to. Maybe it was his pride or the fact that there was one last birthday before the old Freddy's location closed and something big was going to happened.</p><p>It was a death trap. Mike hadn't been lying when he told him that Vincent was capable of anything. There was an animatronic by the name of Toy Foxy - or Mangle as everybody called it, Foxy told him that she was called Marina. The animatronic had been ripped a part by the toddlers, possibly because she and the other Toys had been made from a plastic material, and all that was left mess of parts.</p><p>Vincent took it once step further and turned her into something out of a nightmare. When Carlos had confronted him in the Parts and Service room Toy Foxy had been on the celling. She took Carlos by surprise and swung down from the celling, taking him down in the process. He tried to get away but that made things worse. There were teeth marks on Carlos's neck and head and there was blood on Toy Foxy's teeth. Carlos was in hospital for a while but he didn't make it in the end...</p><p>"There's no point dwelling on the past. The only thing I can do now is protect Miguel and finish what my brother started. " Javier muttered to himself.</p><p>He turned over and reached for his phone on the bedside table. He checked his messages. There was none from Miguel or Christina, his older sister, but there was one from Rosalind, his little sister. Apparently she had landed the leading role in the musical she was looking forward to. Javier smiled. He was happy for his sister. He knew that Rosalind had her dream of becoming a Broadway star but due to the language barrier he knew she had trouble learning both the words and lyrics. But, Rosalind studied hard and in the end she was reward greatly. She wasn't at the level of a Broadway star yet but she was getting there.</p><p>With nothing else to do Javier got out of bed and went over to the closet. He pulled out his clothes: a dark teal shirt and black trousers (that would do for now) and made his way to the bathroom. He took a quick shower in order to wake himself up. When he was finished he step out of the shower and dried himself, he put on his clothes when he was finished. With that done he went downstairs and headed into the kitchen. Mike would back soon and Javier wanted to brew himself some tea.</p><p>He heard somebody knock on the door behind. Immediately, he smiled knowing full well who it was. He turned around and walked over to the door, opening it for his boyfriend. However, once he saw what was in Mike's arms that smile had vanished instantly. There was a little girl sleeping in Mike's arms, she was cuddling a Foxy's plush. She had dark chestnut brown hair and she was wearing pink pajamers and Mike's blazer.</p><p>Okay... What happened this time?</p><p>"Hi, Javi." Mike greeted.</p><p>"Miguel, I love you but its too early for surprises." Javier responded.</p><p>Mike chuckled. "Sorry about this, love. But, there's was no alternative."</p><p>
  <em>No alternative, huh?</em>
</p><p>"Why don't you come in and put the little one on the couch?" Javier suggested. "You can tell me about what happened last night."</p><p>"Alright." Mike said.</p><p>He followed Mike into the living room. The redhead placed the girl on the couch and went on to explain what happened. He told her that her name was Emily and went onto explain what happened last night. He also brought up Jeremy's no show at Freddy's. Javier just shrugged in response. Sometimes he wonder what was going through that man's head. Its bad enough he left Mike on his own, he has a job to do and he's refusing to do it.</p><p>Now he could understand why Mike brought her to their home. It was all to do with protection, and Javier would be lying if he said he didn't know how to protect somebody. Of course, they didn't have the full story. Emily only told Mike so much and the rest he found out from Chica. Still though they could be more going on and Emily might be afraid of opening up to him. Javier knew first hand what that was like.</p><p>"And, her parents don't know where she is?" Javier inquired.</p><p>"No. In fact I don't think they know she was run away in the first place. If they did they would've found her by now. Emily told me that they were shouting again so I think she has done this before, or tried to at least." Mike explained.</p><p>"What were they arguing about?" Javier asked.</p><p>"I don't know. Emily didn't tell me." Mike replied. "I was kind of hoping Emily would tell me more whist she living with us. Temporally, of course. She can't stay at the Pizzeria all day and she only went to sleep at 4am."</p><p>"4am?"</p><p>"She had one of Chica's cupcakes and Foxy was telling her stories." Mike told him. "I know its not a good bedtime for a girl her age but she was sleeping before I showed up."</p><p>"You don't suppose she's frightened of parents, do you?" Javier asked.</p><p>"Maybe. Though, if she is, then she's probably more frightened of Father then her Mother. Chica told me he would shout at her and belittle her whereas her Mother would shower her in gifts and dresses." Mike replied.</p><p>"That's not normal, Miguel, and you know that first hand." Javier said.</p><p>"... I do, Javi." Mike muttered.</p><p>Ah, he shouldn't have said that. He was meant to help Miguel, not make things worse for him. They had both agree not to mention certain things involving Vincent, the kidnapping was high on that last. He just wished he could do more to help Miguel. Maybe he could find Vincent himself and make sure he ends up behind bars. But even then it was hard to forget what has happened to you</p><p>Javier went closer to Mike and wrapped his arms around him. Mike turned to face him slightly.</p><p>"Don't think about him, mi amour. He can't hurt you now." Javier said. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up."</p><p>Mike smiled at him. It was a small smile but it better then nothing. "Its alright, love. No harm done."</p><p>They were interrupted by a soft murmur coming from the couch. They turned there attention back to Emily and watched as she rolled over onto her side. She pulled the Foxy plush closer to her and was hugging it affectionately. Okay, now that was adorable. Javier removed his arms from Mike and went over to the couch. Carefully, he removed the blanket from back pillows and put it over Emily. He turned around just in time to see Mike yawning.</p><p>"Tired?" He asked teasingly.</p><p>"Well, I have been working the night shift." Mike said. He then gave him a knowing look and tapped Javier's nose with his middle finger. "Don't get any ideas, Javier. Someone has to look after Emily."</p><p>Javier chuckled and held up his hands defensively. "I was only going to stay with you until you went to sleep. You know you haven't been sleeping well lately."</p><p>"I haven't been sleeping well in years, Javi." Mike told him. "What's the difference?"</p><p>"That you are all past that now and you are healing. That's the important thing, Mi amour." Javier said. He went towards Mike and kissed him on the forehead. "Rest, Miguel. You've earnt it."</p><p>Mike smiled at him and kissed his check before heading upstairs. Javier sighed. He really did love him, and he would anything to protect him. They would get through this together. Though, Mike hadn't been lying when he said he had trouble sleeping. He had been having nightmares for a while now, he kept reliving the abuse he got from Jonathan and the kidnapping with Vincent - in fact he had been reliving any interaction with Vincent, both the good and the bad ones. Javier wished he could more but he didn't know what else to do. He could only offer him support and comfort when Mike needed it. They would talk about the dreams and nightmares whilst they were cuddling but he wouldn't push him if Mike had reached his limits.</p><p>He prayed that Mike would've have a peaceful sleep. He knew that would be impossible for him.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em>"Mikey, where are you?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He was hiding behind cart. He was close to the exit. If he was feeling brave enough he might make a dash for the exit. But, Vincent would see him and he knew he would stand no chance against him. Vincent was taller then him, not by that much but he could still out run him. He needed to be careful it was going to out smart the purple man. He could try sneaking his way to the exit but there wasn't enough objects to hid behind on the way to the exit. That, and there were too many lights on. All it took was Vincent to look behind him and it he would be spotted.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He should've expected this. Vincent had been telling him that he was working on some </em>
  <em>enormous</em>
  <em>, something that would rival Freddy's. But, he wasn't expecting a full blown carnival. He had to admit he was impressed with that Vincent had done but he would never him that. Was it wrong of him to assume that? To not be happy of his Father's success. He was proud of what Vincent and Alec had done but... Well, what was the purpose of all of this? Entertainment? A trap for unsuspected people? A business? Mike didn't know and, quite frankly, he didn't want to find out.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He held his breath as he watched Vincent get closer to his hiding spot. He needed to do something. A distraction. Anything. There had to be something he could do. He scanned the area around him. Vincent was far to close to him in order for him to throw at rock at something. If he was quick enough he could pull it off but there was no rocks on the ground. He looked up. Vincent stopped near the cart but he didn't see him. He was humming to himself, trying to figure out where to look next. He turned around to face the direction he came from.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Slowly, Mike backed off. He was crouching backwards and had his eyes on Vincent in case the man turned around and he would've to stop. He didn't notice the box behind him and Mike had bumped into it. Mike froze and his breath quickened. He hadn't even noticed the box. Vincent heard the sound and turned around. Once he saw Mike he started grinning and walked over to him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"There you are!" Vincent said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>No! No, No, NO, NO, NO! Where did it all go wrong?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent crouched down in front of him. He had that damn smile on. "Now why are you hiding down here, cub? Wouldn't you prefer to be somewhere warmer? Come on out now. Don't be shy."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He offered him his hand and, reluctantly, Mike accepted it. He kept an eye on Vincent in case he tried anything. He didn't think he would be strong enough to stop him from trying anything but he wasn't going to let Vincent win.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"There now. See, Mikey. You don't need to be afraid of me. You know I would never do anything to hurt you." Vincent said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"But you have hurt people before. And, you've have killed too." Mike pointed out. "Why shouldn't I be afraid of you?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent sighed. "Cub, I told you before. That couldn't have been helped. I needed blood for Alec and I wasn't going to just sit by and wait for results." He reached forward to touch Mike's check, stoking it affectedly. He had that look in his eyes like he was remembering something. "I would've done the same for you."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike was shaking his head furiously. He didn't want Vincent to kill for him. He... Oh, wait he already did that. He killed Jonathan. He told him everything Jonathan had done to him. And... he had been there for him. He comforted him when no else would, he took him away from that monster and brought him to place of sanctuary. And... he killed Jonathan. Jonathan worked at the scrapyard and he had been working late because Aisha kicked him out of the house. Vincent threw him into one of the machines. Mike had been horrified when Vincent told him that. And, he did it for him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike shivered. It still felt like yesterday when they were at the old house - their old house.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Mikey?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Its... Its nothing." Mike insisted. "Please, let go of my hand.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent hummed, considering the request. He wanted to trust him, he had no reason as to why he shouldn't. But, Mikey could run away from him again and, whilst it would make an interesting game of hide and seek, he just wasn't in the mood for games right about now. Perhaps if they went inside they could play some video games. Its has been a while since he played Banjo-Kazooie.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"How do I know you won't run away from me?" He questioned.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I..." Mike started to speak but he stopped soon after. He knew he would lying he told Vincent he would stay. He had learnt how to play along when it was required but in this case it would useless. Vincent would be suspicious of him and he knew he was intimidated of him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You don't have a reason, do you?" Vincent inquired.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No..." Mike muttered.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You... You don't want to stay with me, do you?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"No." Mike admitted. He looked into those grey eyes. Maybe he should tell him the truth. "I'm scared of you, Vincent. I'm scared of the man you have become and your not the same man I remember, regardless of how much that is. You can keep telling me that you won't hurt me but how can I trust a murderer?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Your... scared of... me."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent let go of Mike's hand. He took two steps back and his eyes fell to the ground. It was like he was being stab in the back and it hurt like hell. This... This isn't want he wanted! Of course, there was no else to blame but himself but... Mikey was scared of him. His precious cub was scared of him. Him. His son was scarred of his Father! He... He was not the monster Mikey thought he was. Everything he did was for his Sons. He was just him, Mikey and Alec against the world. They didn't need anyone else.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Oh, he was well aware with his Sons feels for that </em>
  <em>Spaniard. He also knew that Javier was related to that police officer. It shouldn't bother him but... Well, nobody was allowed near Mikey. Everybody else had already hurt him, or used him, or turned their back on him. Jeremy did. Fran did. Jonathan definitely did. Aisha did. Who's to say that this man won't hurt his son?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He pulled out a piece of cloth from his pocket.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I didn't want to do this..."Vincent said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He quickly turned around to face Mike and power walked over to him. He grab Mike's arm, pulled him closer and put the cloth over Mike's nose. The redhead tried to fight back when he realised what was happening but it was useless. He coughed a few times and fell backwards. Vincent put his free hand on his Son's back and carefully guided him to the ground. Mikey was out like a light. It pained Vincent to do this but he had no other choice. Mikey was not leaving him again.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I'm sorry, Mikey. But, you can't leave me. Not again. Not after so many years." Vincent said as he brushed Mike's hair with his fingers. "Don't worry. Once we're back inside you'll forget this ever happened. It will take time for you to trust me again. I know. But I am a </em>
  <em>patient man, Mikey, and I'm willing to wait until the day comes when you come home to me. We'll be a family again soon, cub. I promise."</em>
</p>
<hr/><p>Mike's eyes snapped open and he quickly sat up in bed. He had to put his hand over his mouth in order to stop him from screaming. He was struggling to breath. It felt like he his nose was being covered again and he was being subjected to the sleeping gas again. He's heart was beating fast and he was shaking.</p><p>He heard music coming from downstairs. It sounded like someone was playing guitar. He realised that he was sleeping in his and Javier's bedroom. He started to take deep breaths and recalled everything that Javier had said to him whenever he woke him up from the nightmares. <em>Your safe, Mi amour. No one's going to hurt you. </em><em>He can't hurt you. </em><em>I won't let them. I will protect you. </em>Eventually, he was breathing properly again but he was still shaking.</p><p>It was that nightmare again. The one where Vincent knocked him out with sleeping gas at the carnival. It seemed to be the same one each night, a horrible reminder of what that man was capable of. An example of how his soothing words were nothing more then an obsession. "<em>We'll be a family again soon, cub. I promise." </em>How can they be a family after everything that happened? Vincent must have been messed up in the head to even consider that. They could never been a family again. Vincent had broken his trust a long time ago and Mike, though he could never hate the man even after what he did to him, he could never give him unconditional love</p><p>
  <em>He hated this... He just wanted things to go back to normal.</em>
</p><p>Mike lied back down and curled up into a ball. He put the covers over him and brought the spare pillow closer to him. He needed something to cuddle with. It was usually Javier who did that but he was needed downstairs. He couldn't be selfish right now. He checks were damp. He was crying again. He used to hate crying, especially in front of people. It showed weakness and it made people believe he was a coward. That he was not strong enough to fight back.</p><p>Now he just let the tears fall, learning that it was okay to cry when he needed to. He didn't need to keep it inside anymore. He... He hated this! He didn't want to suffer anymore. He was tired of waking up from the same nightmares and getting no sleep afterwards. Tired of the same games he played against the murderer. Tired of people looking at him sympathetically because he was hurting. He just wanted things to go back to normal .</p><p>
  <em>Its wasn't fair.</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Whilst Mike was sleeping.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Emily woke up to the sound of music. Somebody was playing an instrument close by her. She had never heard somebody play before she had to admit that whoever it was they were pretty good. Though, the melody sounded sad and Emily couldn't help but wonder why the performer was playing it so sadly.</p><p>She realised that was sleeping on someone's couch. It wasn't like the one her parents have at home. That one was a hideous colour where as this one was a shade a blue and had fluffy pillows. There was a blanket over her body and she still had her Foxy plush. Now she definitely knew she wasn't at her parents home. She didn't have any stuffed animals in her room, only toy dolls. She did have a cute teddy hear at one point but it mysterious vanished one day. She asked her Mum and Dad if they had seen it but they hadn't seen it anywhere. Her dad did tell her it was probably her fault the bear went missing. Which is a shame because she loved that bear.</p><p>What was the last thing she remember?</p><p>It was dark outside. She was a building and this kind man allowed her inside because it was cold. She met a bear, a rabbit and a chicken. They were really nice and she was able to hug them. The chicken guided her to a room that resembled a pirate ship. That was cool! And, she met a real pirate too! Okay, so he was actually a red fox but he was a pirate. He even told her that he and the others would be her friend! That had made her extremely happy. Eventually the chicken left the room as the fox was giving her a tour of his ship. The last thing she remembered was the fox tell her stories about his adventures.</p><p>Emily looked at the plushie she was cuddling. Before going to sleep she remembered the nice man offering her choice of which plushie she could take with her, insisting that the manager wouldn't mind if she took one. Imminently, she choose the fox plush. She was hugging the plushie when she noticed the little white tag on the back of the fox. She brought the fox a little bit closer and saw the words 'Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria'.</p><p>"<em>Oh, that's right. I was at Freddy Fazbear Pizzeria. The bear's called Freddy, the rabbit's Bonnie, the chicken is Chica and the fox is Foxy. They were all super nice and Foxy said they would be my friends."</em> Emily thought. But, then what about that man. He seemed nice enough and he didn't hurt her, he didn't say anything horrible to her when she told him she didn't like the dark. Foxy and Chica spoke fondly of him. What was his name again? She recalled Chica said the name 'Mike'. Maybe that was his name.</p><p>Emily rolled onto her right side. She realised that she was in somebody's living room. The tv was on and the person on the other side of the screen was reporting the news. There was a man sitting in the chair near the tv, his right leg was over his left and he was playing the guitar. He had dark chestnut brown hair and she could spot a pair of black eyes. His skin tone was tanned and he was wearing a dark teal shirt and black trousers. He seemed nice enough but looks could be deceiving. Slowly, she sat up.</p><p>"Um. Excuse me." Emily said as she waved her hand, hoping to catch his attention.</p><p>The man stop playing. He turned to her. He blinked twice, confused as to why she was sitting on the couch, before his eye lit up - He probably remembered who she was. He placed his guitar against the tv stand before looking back at her.</p><p>"Hey there." He greeted. His voice had some sort of accent. "How are you feeling? Did you sleep well?"</p><p>"Oh. Um, hello." She replied. She hadn't expected him to be so nice. Hardly anybody asked her those questions. She realised she had been a little on the timid side but she "I'm okay, I haven't slept like that in a while. Um, so, who are you? I remember being at a Pizzeria last night and there's was a man called Mike working there. Do you know where he is?"</p><p>"Okay, huh? Well, that good to hear. I'm Javier by the way. Javier Jones. But, you can Javi if you like. And, you must be Emily." The man said. "Miguel brought you here after he finished his shift. He's sleeping upstairs but he'll be down later."</p><p>"Miguel?" Emily repeated.</p><p>"That's my partner's name in my mother tongue. You know him better as Mike, though." Javier clarified.</p><p>"Does he mind being called that?" Emily asked. She then realised that the question might have been too rude and quickly apologised. "S-Sorry I didn't mean..."</p><p>Javier waved her off. "Its fine. No harm done." He then turned thoughtful for a moment and eventually he shrugged his shoulder. "You know I've never really asked him before. I just started calling him that after we met for the first time..."</p><p>Emily watched the man carefully. He started going of on a tangent, he was debating with himself on something. She couldn't quite figure out what as the man had slipped into his Mother tongue. Ever so often he kept bringing up the name Miguel - Mike - and he kept making at face when he mentioned, what Emily presumed was, something horrible.</p><p>"Um, Javi." Emily said.</p><p>"Huh? Oh, right, sorry about that. Force of habit." Javier apologised. "What was I talking about again?"</p><p>"When you and Mike first met." Emily told him.</p><p>"That's it. Thank you, Emmy" Javier said. "Well, technically, before our first official meeting, me and Miguel met a few times in our dreams. Its difficult to explain but we have a special connection of sorts. The first time we met I heard somebody calling for me. Or, rather, a saviour of sorts - I didn't know what was happening to him at the time. Anyway, in our joint dream, I was walking down a corridor and I saw Miguel sitting at a desk crying. I tried to console him but he didn't hear me, he didn't even acknowledge me. I didn't really get to know him properly until our second dream."</p><p>"What happened?" Emily asked.</p><p>Javier smiled at the memory. "We met at a beach at sunset. Miguel looked so peaceful, he couldn't recall how long it had been since he has been at peace. We met, he seemed a bit surprised to be some else in his dream but he started to relax when we started talking. Probably because <em>that</em> hadn't happened yet." Once he saw the curious looking in Emily's eye, he immediately shook his head "Sorry, Niña, but I'm not allowed to talk about that. Me and Miguel already talked about it and he doesn't want to bring it up. It frightens him."</p><p>"Oh, okay." Emily muttered.</p><p>She was a little disappointed that Javier wouldn't talk about the thing that frightened Mike but it would've been rude of her to pester him about it. Especially after he and Mike had allowed her into their home. Speaking of that...</p><p>"So, when can I go home?" Emily asked.</p><p>"At the moment me and Miguel don't know when you can go home. We don't know your parents contact details so we don't know how to get in touch with them." Javier explained. "The manager at the Pizzeria is contacting the police."</p><p>"The Police?"</p><p>"Emily, is there anything going on at home that we should know about?" Javier asked.</p><p>He watched her carefully. Emily look away from him and was biting her lip, like she was contemplating something. She moved her knees closer to her body and at the corner of her eye it look liked her eyes were watering. Javier wondered if he said something wrong but, if Miguel wanted to her help her - and by that extant him and Scott as well, then they would need every bit of information then could require. Although, he wondered if he should've waited for Miguel to wake up. He was good at comforting people but she trusted Miguel more then she did with him.</p><p>He stood up and walked over to the couch she was sitting on. He sat down and place his right hand on her shoulder. Emily turned to him.</p><p>"Its alright. You don't have to tell me anything. We can wait until Miguel wakes up if you want to talk. But, you should know something, Emmy. In this situation its never fault." Javier said.</p><p>"My Daddy's not very nice." Emily whispered. "He keeps arguing with Mummy. He drinks this... strange liquid that smells horrible and sometime when he drinks too much of it he lashes at. Sometimes at mummy, sometimes... at me. And, when he's like that, he just keeps yelling and the living room becomes a mess."</p><p>"<em>So, he's an </em><em>alcoholic then." </em>Javier thought.</p><p>"I was blamed for it one time."</p><p>"What were you blamed for?" Javier asked.</p><p>"For messing up the living room. Somebody came to the house and noticed the mess. Mummy and Daddy said I did it because I was being disobedient and started to create a mess when I wouldn't get my way. But, I know it wasn't me. I was nowhere near the living room when it happened. I was... hiding upstairs in the attic." Emily told him. "I used to have this white teddy bear with a cute bow but it went missing one day. I asked my parents but mummy told me she hadn't seen it and daddy told me to stop playing with teddy bears and that it was my fault it went missing."</p><p>Javier brought her closer and pulled her into a hug. Emily buried her head into his chest, allowing the tears to fall down. He placed his right hand on her back and started rubbing circles.</p><p>"There, there, Emmy. Its alright now. Your safe." Javier comforted.</p><p>"I loved that bear." Emily mumbled into his shirt.</p><p>"I'm sure you did, Princess." Javier said. <em>Princess. </em>Where did that come from? And, was it okay for him to call her that? She wasn't his daughter by any means but... well, he already felt attached to her. Its strange. She had only been in the house for a few hours but he didn't want her to go back to her house. Then there was Miguel. Would he even want children in the first place, even after what happened with the Missing Children? He had no involvement with what happened but sometimes he was having trouble coping with the idea that his Dad is a murderer. Then there was the kidnapping, the manipulation, the lies and the truth... Miguel was really struggling. Would he want children, either adopted or biological, knowing full well that they would have some sort of connection to that man?</p><p>They were interrupted by a grumbling sound. Javier looked down and noticed Emily grinning at him sheepishly.</p><p>"Um, Javi. I'm hungry."</p><p>"So, I noticed. "Javier chuckled. "Come on then. How's about I fix you a bite to eat?"</p><p>Emily nodded her head and remove herself from Javier's lap, allowing him to stand up. She followed him into the kitchen and listened as he told her everything they had. Emily didn't know what she wanted. Usually, her Mother would just make her a sandwich. Now though it looked like she had the ability to choose whatever she wanted yet she didn't know what to choose. Sensing an inward struggle with herself, Javier asked her if she wanted something light, like eggs on toast for example. Emily agreed and, with Javier's assistance, she carefully took a egg out of the egg basket and handed it to him. She couldn't help but watch him as he went to work.</p><hr/><p>Scott was busy working in the Security room. He was looking over the footage from last night. Whilst Mike had access to the cameras inside the Pizzeria, only he had access to the camera outside the Pizzeria. The new security system was his idea. Before the only camera system that was required was the ones inside the Pizzeria. They were only used for monitoring the building and watching the animatronics whenever they went into a different room.</p><p>But, every system had its faults. The camera would be temporally disabled whenever Bonnie and Chica were moving around. It would only be for a few seconds but, since the layout of the cameras was small, it was easy to track them again. The camera feed in the kitchen was disabled but you could still hear the audio. The monitor took up power whenever it was being used. There were also blind spots in front of the doors of the security room so it was hard to see if something standng outside the office. It was little things like these that needed to be fix.</p><p>So, when he became the manager of the Pizzeria he decided to implement the new camera system. The visual were less staticky and the cameras were protected from hackers. The camera in the kitchen had been fixed and there were now camera stationed outside of the Pizzeria.</p><p>"Thought I would find you in here."</p><p>Scott turned to the right door. Leaning against the door, with his hands in his pockets, was a man in his mid twenties. He had chocolate brown hair that somewhat wavy at the top and brown eyes. He was one of the dayshift employees but he appearance was quite lad back. He was wearing button up grey shirt and blue jeans with a brown belt and white shoes with red laces. His name was Matthew Nixon.</p><p>Matt had his own involvement of Mike's restoration project. As he had been transferred from another location, he still had direct contact with his previous manager. In fact he was friends with the manager and he owned him a favour. So, Matt had asked for the spare animatronic parts and told him what was happening at the Pizzeria. The manager in question, Peter Kennedy, had agreed with Matt's request and he gave them the parts that needed, including the blueprints for the upgrades.</p><p>"How long have you been in here, Scott?" He asked. "Apparently, you have been here since Mike finished his shift."</p><p>"I was. Mike wanted me to come in early. He said we had a nightly visitor last night and he wanted my advice on something. So, give or take a few hours." Scott replied. "Besides, Mike wanted me to check the outer camera for something."</p><p>"Scott, how many times do we have to tell you? You work too hard. You need to relax, take a break one in a while." Matt said.</p><p>"I'll relax once we don't have to deal with Vincent anymore. But, I doubt that will ever happen." Scott remarked. He shook his head instantly, regretting what he said. "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you, Matt. I just wish we didn't have to deal with him anymore.. We don't know what's planning next."</p><p>"You don't need to apologise to me, man. I think everybody just a bit on edge ever since the kidnapping and some other things." Matt replied. "Peter, Jack and Kyle have their own problems to deal with as it is."</p><p>"Jack and Kyle didn't have to get involved with what's been going on here." Scott pointed out.</p><p>"True but Henri has had some deals with Fazbear Entertainment and we know how neglectful the boss is of his company." Matt said. "Besides the more people we have on our side the better chance we have against people like Vincent. I just glad with have somebody like Jack on our side, despite his... condition."</p><p>Scott nodded in agreement as Matt took a seat in the spare chair. Having more people helping them meant having more eyes keeping an eye out for any useful information. At first Scott didn't want the help, the less people who knew about the murders the better, but he soon realised that there more problems out there, not just at his Pizzeria. There was only so much he could do on his own and he needed all the help he can get if they were going to stand any chance against Vincent or Fazbear Entertainment.</p><p>"Scott, did my eyes just deceive me or did I just see a child running up to the Pizzeria?" Matt questioned.</p><p>He followed Matt's gaze to the monitors on the screen. Sure enough, as he had already seen, there was a child running up to the Pizzeria. Scott had been trying to pinpoint the time in which Emily arrived at the Pizzeria last night, in case the police suspected him or Mike kidnapping her. Emily had arrived at 10pm, an hour before Mike showed up.</p><p>"She was our nightly visitor from last name. Her name is Emily." Scott informed him. "Mike found her sleeping in the alleyway beside the Pizzeria and brought her in. In case your wondering, Mike allowed her to pick one of the plushies from prize corner."</p><p>"Explains why there was money on the counter when I checked it early." Matt said, "But, why was she here last night. Doesn't she know its far too dangerous to be out at night?"</p><p>"Mike told me she ran away from home and that it might have something to do with parents. We don't know the full story yet but hopefully Mike will be able to get through to her. He really wants to help her." Scott replied. "Oh, that reminds me, I need to call the police. I need to inform them about what's happened."</p><p>Scott brought out his phone from his pocket and, from the corner of his eye, he saw Matt looking at him in surprise. He turned to him slightly with a amused smile on his face and raised his eyebrow. He was probably surprised to seeing the more modern phone in his hand rather then the old fashioned one or the one they had at the Pizzeria. Really now, just because he was in his forties doesn't mean he doesn't keep up with the latest trends... Or, at least he tries to. Matt just grinned back at him sheepishly and turned his interest back to the monitors. Scott shook his head and dialled the number for the police station.</p><p>"Three-one-one, operator. Your speaking to Mrs Heather Marshal. How can I help you?"</p><p>"Hello. My name is Scott Cawthon. I'm calling from Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria..."</p><p>Scott was interrupted by a groan on the other side. "Urgh. That Pizzeria. What happened this time? Did somebody break one of the machines again or has somebody gone missing?"</p><p>"Uh, no, no ones gone missing. No, I'm calling you to inform you that a child has ran away from home." Scott replied.</p><p>"O-oh. I'm sorry. It just that we used to get a number of complaints from that place. t was mostly from the parents, the employees, the manager. And... Well, you know what happened with the missing children." Heather said.</p><p>"I do." Scott replied.</p><p>"Yeah. Its a shame that they were never found, the case had been closed six years ago. It would be great if we had any new leads but..." Heather sighed. "I'm sorry, Sir. I'm rambling. You mentioned something about a run away."</p><p>"Yes. She came to my Pizzeria last night at 10pm. One of my employees found her sleeping outside and brought her in. Her name is Emily. She's six years old, has dark chestnut brown hair and blue eyes." Scott told her.</p><p>"Right. And, where is the child right now?" Heather asked.</p><p>"I asked my employee to take her home with him. I know its a bit strange but we are busy all day so there is no one available to watch over her. Plus we don't exactly know how Emily will coop in a noisy environment so it would be unfair to put her in one." Scott replied.</p><p>"Do you trust this man?" Heather questioned.</p><p>"Absolutely. He's is my godson. I know it doesn't account for much but ever since I took over as the manager of the Pizzeria I did background check on all of my employees. Mike has a clean slate and he knows how to look after children. He's the reason as to this place finally got repaired and updated." Scott told her.</p><p>"I see. Do you have anymore information about Emily at the moment?"</p><p>"Unfortunately, we only have a handful information at the moment. Mike will let me know when he has more. However, what we do know is that she ran away from home because of her parents. Apparently, the Mother treats her well, she buys her dresses and dolls but she keeps her in all day and she doesn't let her go. Another reason as to why I allowed Mike to take Emily home." Scott reported. "Its the Father we have concern with. As far as we know there is no physical violence going on but he belittles her, yells at her - going as far a yelling swear words - and he tells her to grow up when asking about certain things. They have also been neglectful to their child. A few months ago there was birthday party but both parents were working all day and the couldn't get a baby sitter for her so allowed her to go. However, they were both working late and Emily ended up staying with the Mother of the birthday girl."</p><p>"Right. Let me check to see if her parents have reported her as missing. Then we will get a better idea of what's going on." Heather said.</p><p>Scott leaned back slightly in his chair as waited for Mrs Marshal's response. He saw Matt flipping through the camera for him. So far everything was under control. Foxy was doing story time and Chica was assisting him. Bonnie and Freddy were interacting with some of the children in the main party room. Everybody was present and accounted for.</p><p>"That's strange." Heather commented.</p><p>"What is it, Mrs Marshal?" Scott asked.</p><p>"There hasn't been any missing reports for Miss Emily." Heather replied.</p><p>Scott and Matt exchanged a look with each other. Did they just hear that right? Emily's parents haven't reported her as missing?</p><p>"They haven't reported her as missing?" Scott repeated.</p><p>"No, they haven't. They might not know that she has gone missing but she goes to school, right. Surely, they would have woken her up for that." Heather replied. Scott could hear her typing. "Oh, now this is interesting. Apparently, Mr and Mrs Porter have been reported for several noise complaint. The next door neighbour heard shouting and something smashing in the living room."</p><p>"Interesting." Scott commented.</p><p>"Not only that but when the police officer visited the family he didn't see any children in the house. Of course it could just mean nothing and that Emily was at a friends hours or her Aunts and Uncles but neither Mr Porter or Mrs Porter have any siblings." Heather said. "Alright, Mr Cawthon, I'll take it from here. I will contact Social services and visit the parents. There's something not right about this."</p><p>"Thank you, Mrs Marshal. I'll contact you if I receive any information." Scott said.</p><p>They said good bye to each other and the call ended. Scott sighed as he took in this newfound information. He still couldn't believe what he heard from Mrs Marshal. Emily parents haven't reported her missing. And, on top of that there have been several noise complaints. Could there be a case of domestic abuse going on? It would be wrong of him to presume that but Emily ran away from home reason. Maybe both she and her Mother are scared of Mr Porter. It would explain why Emily's Mother treats her a little bit more better then her Father.</p><p>Just what was going on in Emily's house?</p><p>He hoped Mike was able to get more information from Emily.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Friends in high places.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>From the moment Mike came downstairs, Javier could tell that the redhead was still tired. He entered the room yawning and his eyes were red. On a second glance he noticed that Mike's cheeks were damp, he was staring down at the ground and biting the corner of his lip. It must have been another nightmares, he thought.</p><p>Emily was busy colouring on the floor, she didn't notice Mike walking into the kitchen. Javier followed the redhead into the kitchen. Mike was too busy washing his face to notice him getting closer. Javier placed his hand on Mike's right shoulder. Mike froze for just a moment before turning around to face him.</p><p>"Javi?"</p><p>"Are you alright, Miguel?" Javier asked.</p><p>"I… I'm fine."</p><p>"Really? Then why are you still tired?" Javier questioned. "You were only a sleep for a few hours. You could go back to bed, you know. There's no need for you to be up right now."</p><p>"I... I rather not..." Mike muttered.</p><p>And, just like that, the tears fell. Javier pulled him into a hug and felt Miguel grip his shirt. Ah, it must have been that bad then. Miguel didn't do that unless he was terrified of something. He went through he usual routine of calming him down and started to caress his red locks gently. He was glad it wasn't a panic attack but he probably had one when he woke up, especially since he keeps having the same nightmare. He scolded himself for not being there for Miguel when he needed him the most.</p><p>"Was it another nightmare?" He asked. Mike didn't say anything but he did notice he nodding his head at the corner of his eye. "Its okay, its okay. Your safe, Miguel. He won't hurt you."</p><p>"I... I'm Scared, Javi. What if he comes back and this time he doesn't let me go and your not there to save." Mike whimpered. "You saw how close I was to becoming like them. If you hadn't come when you did..."</p><p>"Think nothing of that, Miguel. You're nothing like them." Javier told him.</p><p>"I'm sorry but... You... you don't know that." Mike whispered.</p><p>Did... Did he just hear that right? Was Miguel seriously suggesting that he was like Vincent. He was nothing like that murderer. Miguel was kind. He was shy but that just added to his adorableness. He was never violent towards anyone. He didn't have an addiction for the colour purple. He practically restored Freddy's to it former glory and changed it for the better. Vincent would never do that. No, he would rather see the building burn then restore it - there again was he aware of what Miguel did? Did he even know his son?</p><p>"Miguel, look at me." Javier said.</p><p>Mike looked up and he was staring into Javier's eyes. Javier used his right hand to remove the tears from his eyes. He loved Miguel's eyes. They reminded him of the sea and he could get lost in them.</p><p>"I promise you, Señor, you are nothing like them. You are no monster. You haven't killed, you haven't lied and you haven't manipulated people to get what you want. Think of everything you have done so far to get to where you are to. You restored Freddy's. You have a successful business. You are a skilled artist and people love you work." Javier said. "You are innocent and you are a victim of a madman."</p><p>"But... Jonathan..."</p><p>"Jonathan's death is not your fault. Si, Vincent did that for you but there are other ways of getting justice for what has happened to you. Vincent was driven by vengeance, not love, not justice. What he did was foul, and its the only thing he knows how to do." Javier replied. "Jonathan should've been arrest for his crimes but he was killed instead. Regardless of what Vincent has done, he can't hurt you now. And, if he does then I wont let him."</p><p>"Javi..."</p><p>"I love you, Miguel. And, I can promise you this. Should Vincent come for you then I will stop him. And, if he does take you I will come after you. I will save you and I will not allow him to change you. If it takes all day and all night then so be it. I will come for you." Javier declared before kissing his forehead. "I will not let him win."</p><p>Mike sniffled as he started to smile. There was something about Javier's words that always cheered him up. He knew how to comforted him whenever he needed. He would be lost without Javier. They had been through a lot together and they had each others back. They trusted each other, they cared for each other, they knew how to make the other smile. Mike remembered the time when Javier was confronted with the truth of Carlos's death, another thing Mike felt guilty of.</p><p>If he was being honest he thought Javier would've hated him when he told him who was responsible for the incident. True, Toy Foxy was the one who attacked him but Vincent was the one who turned her into a monster. Mike had seen photos of what happened to Toy Foxy. She looked like something out of a nightmare. The paint on Mangle's head had chipped away, parts of her ears were missing and the insides were exposed, the mouth was broken and inside of it were a collection of sharp teeth. The body, arms. legs and feet were missing. Parts of her endoskeleton were missing and had turn to rust. The spare endo head was missing an eye and it mouth was broken as well. Scott had told him that she was always broken and the members of staff eventually refused to carry on repairing her. But, this... Toy Foxy had become something else entirely.</p><p>As for Javier he didn't hate Mike for telling him the truth. No, in fact, he had been completely rocked by what he was told - mainly because, at the time Mike told him, he already knew what Vincent had been doing. He had been there for Mike. He took him away from the abuse after Mike had told him about Jonathan and patched him up after seeing what Jonathan had done to him. He saved him... And, yet he was a monster. He was the one responsible for the Missing Children's death, his own hermano death, and he had his own hand at the wrong doings at Freddy's. Was it all just a ruse? Did he really care for Miguel or was he just doing it to bring him home?</p><p>After he was finished it was his turn to comfort Javi. The whole story had opened old wounds. He had been the closet to Carlos and it still hurt to talk about him. He even kept his Brother's scarf and still wore it to this day.</p><p>Mike wrap his own arms around his lover and sighed blissfully. "I love you two, Javi."</p><p>They stayed like that for a few minutes before letting go.</p><p>"Thanks for that, Javi." Mike said.</p><p>"No problem, mi amour. Do you want to talk about it?" Javier said. "I know you don't like talking about these things but it might help. Besides, I might be pushing it here, but I don't want you to keep it all to yourself. I want to help you, Miguel, but I understand if you don't to talk."</p><p>Mike smiled slightly. "Its okay. I know you mean well." He sighed as he recalled the nightmare. "Its the same nightmare I keep having each night. The one where I back at the carnival and he uses the sleeping gas. I could tell it pained him to do it but... he would've done anything to bring me home."</p><p>"If it pained him then why go through with it in the first place? If he loves you like he says he does then why result in dirty tactics to make you stay." Javier countered. "If he wanted to you to stay then he would of done things differently."</p><p>Now that he thought about it, Javier couldn't help but wonder about Miguel's Brother. He had only met Alec once, and that was when he was working undercover at the carnival. Of course, back then, Alec hadn't given him his name - in fact he had been in 'disguise' for the whole experience - so he didn't know what Miguel's Brother actually looked like. One thing was for certain though. He had been around Vincent long enough to know what his Father had been doing. Did he simply not care about what his Father was doing all this time. Did he actually know the ulterior motive behind the whole ordeal? Was Vincent manipulating him into staying with him?</p><p>"What about your brother? Surely, he knows what Vincent has done. Why doesn't he leave him? Or, at least try to." Javier asked.</p><p>"Because Alec and Vincent have a tight bond, he won't run unless Vincent tells him to. When we were younger Alec had a blood condition. Vincent never left his side but he still made time for the both of us. Alec wasn't allowed out much but Vincent managed to cheer him up." Mike told him. "Its the reason as to why he murderer the kids. He was only going in for blood samples in order to speed up the process. But, Gerald was trying to protect his brother and he ended up receiving a nasty scar on his face. Vincent started to panic and, well, you know the rest."</p><p>"Some people would just do anything for their family, I guess." Javier shrugged.</p><p>"I suppose." Mike shuddered.</p><p>Javier took notice of that and wondered if there was something on Mike's mind. He had a habit of keeping things to himself but that was because he had nobody to talk to. Except for his cousin and her Mother but they were on a family vacation with Fran - it was meant to some sort of bonding vacation for Fran and Rachel and Aisha needed a break anyway.</p><p>"Miguel? Is there something on your mind?" Javier asked.</p><p>"Its just that... sometimes I wonder what would've happened if I went with him that night. If I had decided to run away with him." Mike admitted whilst wrapping his arms around himself. He was looking at the ground. "He promised me so much, Javi. He offered me protection, a home, the family I missed. He said no one would be able to hurt me again and that I would never be on my own again"</p><p>"Miguel, if you went with him you would never see any of us again. Vincent said those things to lure you away." Javier told him.</p><p>"I know." Mike said. "Do know what the scariest thing is, Javi? Part of me wanted to go with him. Part of me actually wanted to go with him and live in this fantasy of his. I actually wanted to go home with him. And, the sad thing is I didn't care if anyone would miss me. You have to remember something, Javi. At that point I was at my lowest moment. I had been hurt, used, and yelled at by people so many times and I wanted nothing more then to escape. I probably would've left with him if it wasn't for one person."</p><p>There was brief pause and Javier was about to stop him when Mike lowered his arms and looked at him. "If It hadn't been for you I think I would've become like them. Because of our meetings in the dreamscape you gave me strength to carry on through the pain. You risked your own life to save me and for that I'm ever so grateful. Without you I don't think I would be where am I today."</p><p>Javier sighed in relief. Mike knew how to keep him on his toes. "Miguel, please, never speak like that again. I don't know what I would do if I ever loose you to him."</p><p>"I'm sorry, love. I'm such a mess." Mike apologised. "I shouldn't even be talking about him yet somehow he always ends up in my thoughts."</p><p>"If that's a problem then why don't you write them down, or talk to me about them? You know I want to help you." Javier suggested.</p><p>"That's a good idea. Thanks, Javi." Mike replied.</p><p>"No problem, mi amour." Javier said. "Now, go and sit down. I'll cook you something to eat."</p><p>Mike couldn't argue with that. He kissed his boyfriend on the cheek one more time before heading into the living room.</p><p>He wouldn't trade this for the world.</p><hr/><p>Kyle Dawson sighed as he enter his home. As much as he loved Club Rhythm, it was his baby after all, sometimes he felt so drained maintaining the club all by himself. He had meant to hire more members of staff but he had been so busy lately. Between helping Jack and looking after the kids he just didn't have time to maintain his club, he only had time to do his management duties and sometimes they took awhile. He was thankful he had someone helping him with that sort of stuff or it would never done and no one would get payed.</p><p>He wouldn't be staying for too long either. Javier had texted him and asked him if he could bring some of Alison's old clothes. It turns out that both he and Mike were looking after a little girl for a few days and she didn't have any spare clothes on her. He didn't think Mike would be able to take kids in after what happened to him. There again both he and Jack had two kids of their own and, considering Jack's condition, he didn't think they would be allowed to take in kids either.</p><p>It wasn't Jack's fault. He had been taken against his will, experimented on so that he would become a living weapon and forced to carry out malicious tasks for a mad scientist. And, before he had even met Jack, he found out that his partner had been in a abusive, one sided relationship which resulted in something horrible had happening to him. To this day Kyle didn't know if the relationship between Jack and his ex had been genuine or if the relationship had been made in order to gain control of Jack.</p><p>Stepping into the living room he found the very person he was looking for. He was sitting on the couch reading a book - that seemed to be his latest past time lately, Kyle thought. He had ash brown hair and grey-green eyes. He was wearing a navy blue shirt, black trousers and shoes.</p><p>"Hey, Kai." Jack greeted as he put the bookmark in between the pages he was reading and put the book down.</p><p>"Hello yourself, Jacques." Kyle replied before giving his partner a kiss. "Where's Oscar and Alison?"</p><p>"Alison's upstairs doing her homework and Oscar is at a friends house. He's staying there until six." Jack told him.</p><p>"I'll pick him up on my way back from Mike and Javi's then." The blonde said.</p><p>"Oh. And, why's that then?" Jack inquired.</p><p>"They have taken a little girl in. Javi texted me, asking if they could borrow some of Alison's old clothes." Kyle replied. "They haven't adopted her but they are looking after her temporally. They have some concerns with her parents and Scott's contacted the police."</p><p>Jack hummed as he followed the blonde upstairs. He listened carefully as Kyle told him what happened. It was a bit strange given circumstances. The fact that Emily ran away from her home to Freddy's could be considered as suspicious as anyone would see it as Emily being kidnapped - given the dark history that surrounded Freddy's and all. Then there was the idea of Mike taking Emily home with him. Again it was suspicious but he knew that Mike would never harm a child. Despite that anybody could easily see it as Mike kidnapping the child. Jack did point that out to Kyle but the blonde told him that Scott was checking the security cameras and that he might have to given his side of the story to the police.</p><p>When they were outside Alison's room Kyle knock on the door and, a few seconds later, they were allowed to come inside in. Alison was sitting at her desk working on her on homework. She ad ginger hair, which was still up in pigtails, and black eyes. She was a pink jumper with a bunny on it and navy blue jeans. When she noticed Kyle and Jack at her door she put her pen down and turned to look at them.</p><p>"Hi, Papa." Alison greeted.</p><p>"Hey, sweetie. Good day at school?" Kyle replied.</p><p>"Yeah. We had a spelling test today and I got most of them right." Alison told him.</p><p>"That's good. Just remember to practice the ones you got wrong. You'll get them eventually. After all practice makes perfect." Kyle replied.</p><p>"Will do. Thanks, Papa" Alison said. "So, what did you want to talk about?"</p><p>"Uncle Javi texted me earlier. He was wondering if he and Mike could have some of your spare clothes." The blonde told her. "They looking after a little girl for a few days She's the same age as you and the only thing she has on her in her pajamas."</p><p>"Can I see her?" Alison asked.</p><p>She hoped she would be allowed to see her. Oscar was more successful at making friends then she was, even though she was a bubbly and chatty girl. She did have a few friends of her own but the only time she saw them was a school. They didn't live anywhere near her home and she would need either Jack or Kyle to take her to their house. Whilst Kyle was happy with his daughters enthusiasm he didn't know how long Emily was staying with Mike and Javi.</p><p>"Um. I'm not sure, Ally. Mike and Javi haven't adopted her and I don't know if they are allowing kids to see her. They don't know how Emily will react around other kids." Kyle replied. "I could always ask them though."</p><p>"Oh. Okay." Alison said.</p><p>She joined Kyle at her wardrobe, Jack stepped out of the room for a moment to collect a bag for the clothes. Kyle helped Alison bring out all of clothes and together they went through Alison's clothes to see what she wanted to keep and what she was going to give to Emily. By the time Jack came back with the bag they had sorted out the clothes and put the ones that Alison wanted to keep back into the closet. The others went into the bag. Kyle left his house, telling the two of them that he would be back soon, before entering his car.</p><p>The drive to Mike and Javier's house didn't take long. In fact Mike had been waiting for him in the kitchen when he went to knock on the door. They greeted each other when Mike open the door for him, although the redhead and the brunette did say that they were welcomed in when they wanted. Kyle follow Mike into the living room. Javier and Emily were sitting on the couch, the brunette had his guitar in his hands but he was showing it to Emily.</p><p>"Emily, this is Kyle. He's helping us out a little bit and has some clothes for you." Mike said. "At least until we can get something that you like."</p><p>"Hi." Emily greeted shyly.</p><p>"Hey there." Kyle replied. "Are these two treating you alright? Cause if not feel free to tell Uncle Kyle and he'll sort them out."</p><p>Emily started giggling and Kyle couldn't help but grin at the look Mike and Javier were giving him. Mike's face was unreadable but he was blushing slightly. Javier just looked at him with disbelief and mouthed the words "Uncle Kyle". Unlike his partner who was much more of a fighter then the blonde, Kyle had a way with words and knew how to talk to somebody when needed.</p><p>"Alison doesn't mind Emily borrowing some of her clothes, does she?" Mike inquired, putting the conversation back on track.</p><p>"No, she doesn't." Kyle said. "In fact I think Alison wants to become friends with her. She wants to see her but I didn't know if you two were allowing other kids to see her since this is only temporally."</p><p>Mike and Javier exchange a look with each other. They hadn't thought about allowing another kid to visit Emily, she wasn't there daughter after all. But, perhaps she might be able to settle down if she had somebody her own age being friends with her. Who knows what might happen in the near future?</p><p>"We'll have to think about it, Kyle. Its Emily's choice but if she wants to see her then I don't see why she can't." Mike said.</p><p>"Plus it might help her feel more relaxed around other kids." Javier added. "But, Miguel's right. Its her choice."</p><p>"Um. I'll think about it." Emily said.</p><p>"That's fine. You can take your time with your decision. There's no need to rush." Kyle replied.</p><p>He placed the bag down on the floor, knelt down and open it up for her. Curiosity got the best of Emily and she went in for a closer look as Kyle was bring out the clothes. It was mostly just colourful t-shirts, a few jumpers and trousers - Emily herself had never worn trousers before, her Mother never allowed her to wear them - but there were two dresses as well. One of them was in red with polka dots on it and the other was sleeveless blue dress with florals on them. Kyle told her that Alison had used to switch between favourite colours and she hadn't worn the blue one in awhile.</p><p>"Wow. So pretty!" Emily exclaimed whilst holding the blue dress. "All of this is for me?"</p><p>"Yep. And, you can keep the blue one if you like. Alison and me talked about it and she said she doesn't want it anymore." Kyle replied.</p><p>"Are you sure, Kyle?" Mike questioned.</p><p>"I'm positive, Mike. It didn't cost that much anyway and, like I said, Alison doesn't wear it anymore." Kyle said.</p><p>"Thank you, Kyle!" Emily thanked as she practically jumped towards the blonde and hug him.</p><p>"Aw. No problem sweetie." Kyle said. "Now then. I've got some time before I need to pick my Son up. Javier mentioned something about you having an adventure at the Pizzeria. Why don't you tell me about it?"</p><p>And, that's how they ended up spending the rest of their time together. Alison recounted what happened the night before - minus the running away part. Mike add his own little snippets of the night. He talked about the little misadventures that happened at the Pizzeria. It was mostly about shenanigans that happened between the friends: Like Foxy and Bonnie trying to steal Chica's cupcakes and Freddy trying to stop Bonnie pranks - most of the attempts were unsuccessful though. Emily asked about Goldie and, whilst Mike didn't talk about everything to do with the gold bear, he did bring up the fact that Goldie loves to scare the other animatronics and some of the employees. But that just ended up confusing Emily further and she asked if he was a magician.</p><p>It was moments like these that brought a sense of calm to the group.</p><hr/><p>When it was time for Mike to leave for his shift at the Pizzeria he left an hour early and found himself outside of Jeremy's house. He had an hour until he was suppose to arrive at the Pizzeria and he wanted to talk to Jeremy. He was going to try and convince him to come back to the Pizzeria. He didn't want the brunette to be in anymore trouble with Scott and he wanted to know if Jeremy had made any progress on his investigation.</p><p>As much as Mike hated Jeremy's investigation he couldn't help but be intrigued by it. If Fazbear Entertainment had been neglectful of three of its Pizzeria then surely there was some problems at the others as well. It wasn't Mike responsibility to help every since Pizzeria but, after the conversation he had with Goldie last night, he couldn't help wonder about the other locations. He wanted to know what made them tick, what animatronics they had and what problems they have dealt with. If Vincent had visited them at some point perhaps there's away of reversing what he has done.</p><p>Mike walked up to the front door. Jeremy still had light on in his room and he knew that Jeremy's parents were still awake. Or, at least one of them was. However, before he could knock on the door, somebody beat him to it and open the door before he could even touch it. On the other side of the door was Blake Fitzgerald, Jeremy's Father. He had ash brown hair, though his was little bit darker then Jeremy's, and green eyes.</p><p>Mike had mixed feelings for Mr Fitzgerald. Though Blake himself had been hospitably to Mike, the redhead was having a hard time trusting him - there again he had a hard time trusting people anyway. He hadn't done anything wrong to Mike but he had been <em>best friends</em> with Vincent. He shouldn't be judging him for his choice in friends, Blake didn't know about what Vincent did and he had been completely devastated by the revelation. However, Blake had the answers he needed and he could've saved Mike a lot of pain if he came forward and helped him when he needed it.</p><p>Perhaps that had been his own fault...</p><p>"Oh, Mike, its been a while. How had you been?" Blake said.</p><p>"I've been better, Mr Fitzgerald." Mike replied coolly.</p><p>Blake had been taken back by Mike's unfriendliness. Though, if he was being completely honest, it was well deserved. It was clear to him that Mike had trust issues and, after learning about his past with Vincent, he would probably never forgive him for being friends with a murderer. And, from the conversations he had with his Son, he knew Mike had hard time trusting Jeremy as well. Mike doubted their friendship and he didn't know the reason as to why he was friends with somebody he hardly remember.</p><p>"Uh. Jeremy told about what happened at the carnival. I know it doesn't mean much but..."</p><p>"Its fine, Mr Fitzgerald. Water under the bridge." Mike interrupted.</p><p>"But its not fine, Mike. What Vincent did was horrible. He betrayed your trust and kidnapped you. I don't see how..."</p><p>"Blake, please, I'm trying to move on from that. I don't need a reminder of what happened." Mike said.</p><p>"Oh. I... I'm sorry, Mike." Blake apologised.</p><p>Mike sighed. "No. I'm sorry, Blake. Its just been a stressful time for everybody, myself included."</p><p>"There's no need to explain, Mike. I know you meant no harm." Blake said. "So, are you here to see Jeremy?"</p><p>"Yeah. I'm going to try and convince him to come back to work. Scott said he was going to transfer him dayshift if he keeps skipping work." Mike replied.</p><p>Blake chuckled. "Oh, typical Scott. I swear that man is all work, no play. The stories I could from when we were younger... Ah, well there another time for that." He allowed Mike to come into his house. "Go on ahead, Mike. You know where Jeremy's room is."</p><p>Mike thanked the man before heading upstairs as quietly as possible. Blake and Jeremy were up but there was always a possibility that Mrs Fitzgerald and Lucy were sleeping. Jeremy's door was next to the bathroom. Mike knock on the door gently and waited for Jeremy to open it. A few seconds later said person open the door. Jeremy was surprised to see Mike outside his door. He didn't think Mike would come back to his house so soon.</p><p>"Mike? What are you doing here?" Jeremy asked.</p><p>"Evening, Jerry. I came to see if you were coming to work tonight." Mike replied.</p><p>"Oh. I thought..." Jeremy trailed off and shook his head. "Never mind its nothing."</p><p>To that Mike raised an eyebrow. What exactly was Jeremy going to say?</p><p>"Jeremy, is there something going on?" Mike questioned. "Do you not want to work at Freddy's anymore? Cause Scott was thinking about moving you onto the dayshift if you kept neglecting work."</p><p>"Its not that. Its... Its more to do with you, Mike." Jeremy admitted. "I've been feeling a bit guilty lately. Ever since the incident... Well, before the incident actually, I keeping thinking about our friendship. Especially that day when Javier brought back and you hid behind him when me and the others tried to get closer. You look me right in the end and said 'Your not my friend...'</p><p>"Jeremy... that was because..."</p><p>"Its okay. You don't have to explain it to me. I just keep thinking about it and... your right. We're never proper friends, were we?" Jeremy replied. "We never spent anytime together other then work. You were missing for thirteen years and I never looked for you. Heck, it was like I had completely forgot about you. You had been abused and kidnapped whilst I did nothing. It was Javier who rescued you from Vincent. Not me. Our friendship was a lie and we were obligated to become friends because of our Dads..."</p><p>Wow. Jeremy was really beating himself up about this wasn't he? Mike couldn't blame him for feeling like that. He already had his fair share of regrets and he was slowly working through them. Although, to be fair, half of it was probably his fault anyway. He could've told Jeremy about his problems sooner. In Mike defence he couldn't remember the man when they met again, he didn't trust the man enough to fully open up about what he was going through even though Jeremy kept insisting that they were brothers.</p><p>Mike sat on the bed and took the brunette's left hand. Jeremy turned to look at him.</p><p>"Its not too late for us to start over. There's still a lot with need to talk about and this time we don't have to keep it hidden, myself included. Although, it might take sometime for me to fully open old wounds up again. I don't want to talk about the kidnapping but everything else is on the table." Mike said.</p><p>"Are you sure? I wouldn't want you to talk about anything that might upset you." Jeremy questioned. "Just like last time..."</p><p>"I'm positive, Jerry. Its the only way we can move forward." Mike replied. "I guess I just got so used to keeping everything up inside that I didn't want to be hurt anymore. I didn't tell you about the abuse because I wasn't able to stand up for myself. I was a coward who kept allowing himself to be hurt on a regular basis. And, on that night when Vincent found me bleeding in the alleyway I just broke down and ended up telling him everything. And, I just keeping thinking to myself that if I hadn't told him that Jonathan wouldn't be dead."</p><p>"That wasn't your fault." Jeremy told him.</p><p>"I know. Javi told me the same thing earlier." Mike said. "Point is I think we wouldn't have fallen out with each other if I had told you about it sooner. I guess I was afraid of what might happen if I told you about it."</p><p>"Well, you don't have to be anymore. But, tell me when you are ready, all right? I don't mind waiting this time." Jeremy said. "Give me about five minutes. I'm coming in tonight but I want to keep on working. I think I've found something."</p><p>"That's fine. You can use the security office, I'll tell the animatronics to stay out of it." Mike replied.</p><p>"Bonnie and Foxy can stay out, Freddy and Chica can come in. Besides I just know that I'm going to get a lecture of Freddy." Jeremy told him.</p><p>Mike knew Freddy was going to give him that lecture. Freddy wasn't happy with what he heard last night and he was the leader of there small group of friends. Scott might he the manager but Freddy was definitely the ringleader.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Frights in the night.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"</p><p>So, what did you want to show me?"</p><p>They were standing in the office. Jeremy had his laptop out on the desk, he was typing away whilst Mike was checking the cameras. He was making sure the animatronics - Bonnie and Foxy - were behaving themselves On the way to work Jeremy filled him in what he was working on, though he didn't talk about his discovery much. He simply told Mike he had found an article online. Whilst it wasn't connected to anything that happened in the past, Jeremy was convinced that it had something to do with Fazbear Entertainment. And, if it was to do with Fazbear Entertainment then surely Vincent would follow after woods.</p><p>The two seemed to go hand in hand anyway.</p><p>"I was looking into the company's history for a record of missing people and gross negligence. We know the animatronics were behind the disappearance of the night guards but what about the other people?" Jeremy explained. "Don't you find it a bit strange that we seem to go through employees on a regular basis?"</p><p>"I think Matt talked about it before. Matt had been transferred for doing nothing wrong. I think he said it was to do with sexual harassment, self defence and something to do with his brother, Lucas." Mike recalled. "Matt said he nothing to do with it - and I do believe him - but it was to do with sexual harassment then he would've have been fired over it. Instead he had been transferred here."</p><p>Jeremy nodded. "That's why I believe Fazbear Entertainment has some control over it. They do like to manipulate things to suit a certain image. Or, maybe Vincent had some involvement in it."</p><p>"Knowing him he probably had something to do with it." Mike remarked.</p><p>"That's when I found this..." Jeremy said.</p><p>He brought up an image on his laptop. It was the newspaper article he had mentioned earlier. Jeremy told him that he had scanned through it earlier and, whilst there was nothing special about it due to a lack of information, he did point something out to Mike. The newspaper article was advertising the arrival of a upcoming horror attraction. There were only two short paragraphs of writing, nothing was standing out to Mike so he figured that this project was still in development. However, to the left of the writing there was an image of a empty Freddy head.</p><p>
  <span>
    <em>
      <strong>Coming soon!</strong>
    </em>
  </span>
</p><p>
  <em>Fazbear's Fright: The Horror Attraction.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Local amusement park is getting ready to scare your socks of with a new attraction based on the unsolved mysteries of Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Featuring actual relics from decades old Pizzerias, this new attraction is guaranteed to bring back your childhood in the worst possible way!</em>
</p><p>"Y- your kidding, right?" Mike exclaimed" They're using the Missing Children's incident as a horror attraction?"</p><p>"I only wish I was, Mike." Jeremy replied. "We both know that it was the children causing the haunting because they were possessing the animatronics. But, the company doesn't know that. They keep saying its to do with the animatronics being in free roam mode but, and lets just be honest about it Mike, whenever the camera were on them there behaviour was not normal."</p><p>"If they were connected to the horror attraction wouldn't that just damage their image further?" Mike questioned. "Children went missing on their premises and they couldn't find them. And, when people started questioning the company they denied everything that the people pointed out. Fazbear Entertainment wanted nothing to do with it."</p><p>"True. So that probably means that we can rule them out. Almost rule them out." Jeremy said.</p><p>"What do you mean?" Mike inquired.</p><p>"Well, look at this image here." Jeremy said as he pointed to the image on screen. "This is a Freddy head, right?"</p><p>"It looks like it. Its hard to tell without the eyes." Mike agreed.</p><p>"Whoever is doing this must have access to the equipment used at the Pizzeria. Like animatronic parts, for example. There's only two ways they could of get a hold of this stuff. Option one is from the warehouse and option two is from abandoned Pizzeria." Jeremy explained. "I'm leaning more to option two. It would be impossible to take anything from a warehouse with maximum security, or something like that. Unless it was an inside job."</p><p>"Even if it was an inside job it would be too risky to do it during the day." Mike pointed out.</p><p><em>"Hm. He has a point there." </em>Jeremy thought.</p><p>Regardless of the way he looked at it, something just wasn't adding up. Who in their right mind would open up an horror attraction dedicated to the the unsolved mysteries at Freddy's? It was disgusting. Using an event where children went missing and ended up dying in the process all for the sake of entertainment?</p><p>Jeremy decided to ask the question that lingered on both of their minds.</p><p>"Mike, you don't suppose Vincent will look into this, do you?" Jeremy asked.</p><p>"I... I don't know." Mike replied. "I mean, he might. He always said that his work is no one else's story and I can only imagine that this might send him over the edge. And, he seemed to have some sort of grudge with the company for years now - he didn't tell me what it was, says its too painful to talk about."</p><p>"So, if he does find out about this then chances are that he's going to do something about it." Jeremy summarised.</p><p>"Y-yeah." Mike muttered. "It wouldn't be the first time..."</p><p>Jeremy took notice of that. He turned around and saw the redhead hunched over slightly. He was bouncing his right leg. Rachal had told him that Mike would do that if he was nervous about something and, judging by what he just told him, it looked like he was thinking about something.</p><p>"Mike?"</p><p>"I-I'm fine... I just..." The redhead trailed off, unsure what to say next. He was lying, he knew that, but just didn't know what to say. And, there was no use pretending that everything was normal. Jeremy had already took notice of it. He knew he had to be more truthful if he wanted to voice his concerns. Eventually, he replied to the brunette but it was nothing more then a whisper. "I don't want a part of this."</p><p>"Are you worried about what might happen if your the one who ends up investigating this and Vincent happens to be there again. Like last time?" The brunette knew was treading on thin ice but the question needed to be asked. Jeremy saw Mike nodding his head. "Hey, don't worry about it. We are not making those same mistakes again, Javier would have our heads if we did that. I'll talk to Scott about this. He'll probably send in me or Matt. Or, maybe Jack and Kyle. We won't know until we know more."</p><p>Mike nodded again. His right leg was still bouncing and, whilst he was having a hard time controlling it, it was slowing down. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself before straightening up.</p><p>"Are you okay? Do you need minute to yourself?" Jeremy asked, still unsure if he was allowed to get closer to Mike.</p><p>"No, I'm okay." Mike replied. This time it was genuine. "Sorry about that. It just happens sometimes."</p><p>"Its okay, Mike. You don't need to explain it to me." Jeremy said. "Everything's going to be alright."</p><p>Mike smiled sadly. "I want to believe you, Jerry. But, who knows what's going to happen in the future."</p><p><em>"He has a point there." </em>Jeremy thought.</p><p>It would help if they had some guidance. Or maybe some sort of idea on what might happen next. They could asked the ghost kids for help but it would be just as dangerous to allow them to seek Vincent out then allowing Mike into another trap. Goldie was another option but he was trying to find the Toys.</p><p>
  <em>Although, there was one other option...</em>
</p><p>"So, uh, is there anything else?" Mike asked.</p><p>"Other then a few guesses at what this horror attraction might be? There's really nothing else to go on. Although, I did hear something about a game being made. Its only rumours at the moment but apparently it has something to do with the animatronics." Jeremey said.</p><p>"That's interesting." Mike commented.</p><p>"It is but, the way I see it, its just another scheme to clear up any rumours about the animatronics." Jeremy agreed.</p><p>"Why would they do that? They didn't have any involvement with the animatronics anyway, just look at the condition they used to be in. If I hadn't made the decision to work on Freddy's then they would still be in that condition to this day." Mike replied.</p><p>"Well, maybe its more to do with their reputation instead of the animatronics?" Jeremy suggested. "I mean -"</p><p>"Bonnie!"</p><p>Jeremy had been interrupted by yelling coming from the main party room. The two night guards exchanged a look with each other, wondering what happened this time. They left the security office and made there way to the main party room. Bonnie, Chica, Foxy and Goldie were all surrounding Freddy who was dripping head to toe in white paint, the floor was also coated in white paint. Bonnie and Foxy were laughing at the scene. Chica was scolding the rabbit but her words were being ignored. Poor Goldie didn't know what to make of the situation.</p><p>"Alright, what happened this time?" Mike asked.</p><p>"Another one of his practical jokes." Freddy responded whilst glaring at Bonnie.</p><p>"Just look at him, Mike. He looks like an artic bear." Bonnie laughed.</p><p>"Hey, look! He's Freddy the polar bear" Foxy cheered. That comment just made Bonnie and Foxy laugh harder.</p><p>"Its not funny, boys." Chica scolded</p><p><em><strong>"It seems to me that both Bonnie and Foxy have this little competition to see who can make Freddy the most annoyed. Bonnie appears to be winning." </strong></em>Goldie observed. <em><strong>"Just be careful, Michael, or you'll end up like my Brother here."</strong></em></p><p>Mike sighed. "Thanks, Goldie. But, look at the mess he's made. This needs to be cleaned up before morning and Freddy needs to be dealt with before the paint sets. And, its such a waste of good paint too."</p><p>"I'll try and get the paint of Freddy." Jeremy offered. "You just focus on this, Mike."</p><p>"Alright. Thank you, Jeremy." Mike said. "Now lets see. We going to need the cleaning supplies out of the closet and hot soapy water. Freddy, try not to move whilst your still covered in paint. You can deal with Bonnie later."</p><p>"Is there anything we can do to help?" Bonnie asked.</p><p>The two seemed eager to help. But, after this stunt, who knows what might happen next. And, really now, there was no need for Bonnie and Foxy to cause anymore problems. Freddy was already on the warpath as it is and more deeds like that and they would only anger Freddy further. Mike needed to diffuse the situation before anything else happened.</p><p>"You two can go and sit in Pirate's Cove and think about what you have done. If you two 'help' us then you're only going to cause more trouble." Mike ordered.</p><p>"B-but, Mike." Foxy whined.</p><p><strong><em>"I would do as he says, boys. Your already in enough trouble as it is." </em></strong>Goldie advised.</p><p>Bonnie and Foxy groaned as they walked over to Pirate's Cove, muttering that they were being punished simply because they were having fun and that Freddy never allowed them to have fun anymore. Really now, there are ways of having fun without having to do pranks. But, would Bonnie or Foxy listen? No, they wouldn't.</p><p>Mike turned to Goldie. There wasn't much he could do in his incorporeal form but he could watch Bonnie and Foxy in case they tried anything. The golden bear seemed to take a hint and vanished imminently. Only to reappear in Pirate's Cove once they heard the rabbit and the Fox yelling. Mike chuckled to himself as he made his way supply closet to get a bucket for the water. Maybe now they would take his warnings more seriously.</p><p>One thing was for sure. There's never a dull moment at Freddy's.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>"YOU STUPID LITTLE GIRL!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Emily was cowering in the hallway, next to the table that had few photos on it. There used to be a vase on the table as well but now it was in pieces on the floor. Her Father was standing in front of her. He had just come back from work, he was wearing a white button up shirt, blue trousers and black shoes, the top button of his shirt was undone. He was looking menacingly at her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"That vase belonged to your Mother's Grandmother. That was the only thing she had left of the poor women and now you've broken it. I always knew you were clumsy, Emily, but this just takes the cake!" Her Father sneered. "Well, what do you have to say for yourself?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"It wasn't me! You shoved me -"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Are you calling me a liar?" Her Father demanded.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"W-well, that's what happened." Emily whimpered.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"How dare you even suggest such a thing! You should've been looking where you were going." The man</em>
</p><p>snarled.</p><p>
  <em>W-wait a minute. That's not what happened. True, she had been looking at the vase but she didn't break it. Before her Father came home she had been looking at it, wondering exactly where it had came from. It just showed up in their house one day. Her Mother told her it had belonged to her Grandmother. It was an antique, or so her Mother says. On closer examination there were a few cracks showing.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Then she had been shoved into the table. The vase wobbled on the table and fell to the floor, shattering instantly when it landed on the floor.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Eric, is that you darling?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>O-oh. Her Mother. She had forgotten she had been at home all day. Maybe she could help her out. Surely, her Mother would believe her. Emily knew how much the vase meant to her Mother and, if she explained what happened, then maybe her Mother will understand.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Her Mother stepped into the hallway. Sarah Porter had dark chestnut brown hair, which was tied up in a ponytail at the moment, and blue eyes. She wearing a dark blue two-piece suit and black heals.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>In reality Sarah was only was few inches shorter then her husband but, by wearing a pair of heels and walking gracefully, she was able to make herself taller, and more confident. Emily wouldn't help but feel envious of her grace, wishing she could be just like her Mother. Or, maybe she was fearful - she couldn't decided which one she was feeling more of. Before Sarah greeted her Husband she took one look at the scene before her, her eyes widen once she saw what was lying on the floor.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"The vase!" Her Mother exclaimed. She ran over to it and knelt down, completely ignoring her Daughter in the process. Emily was crying but her Mother didn't even notice her. Instead, her attention was on the shattered vase. She was examining the pieces on the floor in disbelief. How did this happen? She turned to face her husband. "What happened?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Emily knocked it over." Eric lied.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Emily's eyes widen as her Mother turned to face her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Is it true?" She inquired.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"N-no. Well, yes, but..."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Tell me the truth, Emily Marie Porter. Did you break the vase?" Sarah questioned.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>S-She... She didn't know what to say. She didn't know what to do. Technically, she did make it fall but only because she had been shoved into the table. If she told her Mother that then she would be punished. She couldn't lie either. She knew her Mother would believe her Father if she lied to there faces. What could she do then? Should she tell her Mother that her Father shoved her into the table? Would she even believe her if she said that?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Either way she explained it, she was trapped.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You see, darling? She has nothing to say. She knows what she has done wrong but she refuses to speak." Eric observed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I... I'm sorry, Mummy..." Emily apologised.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Her Mother was glaring at her. Emily had never seen her Mother like this before. She tried to back away but the brunette grabbed her arm and slapped her left cheek Emily just sat there in complete silence, wondering why her Mother had just hit her like that. Her hand drifted to the place where her Mother slapped her cheek. It was still stinging and she was certain there was going to be a red mark on her cheek.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Sorry will not fix the vase, Emily. You knew how much this meant to me. This is the last memory I've of my Grandmother. How would you like it if I broke something of yours?" Sarah yelled. "I had that vase for a number of years. I told you it was an antique, it was worth a lot of money but I decided to keep it so that I would have something that would remind me of my Grandmother. And now its in pieces on the floor. And, you dare tell me your sorry?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Y-you slapped me..." Emily whimpered.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, what? Little lady can't handle the pain?" Her Father taunted.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Emily's eyes just shifted between her parents. Why were they doing this to her? Hadn't she been on her best behaviour? As far as she could recall she hadn't embarrassed them in public. She knew her Mother came from a respectful background and that both of her parents were invited to those fancy parties ever so often so she was practically on her best behaviour ever single day. Was it the school? Did one of her teachers have a problem with her and decided to contact her parents? She never misbehaved in class and did her work to the best of her ability so that can't be it.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Just what was going on?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"W-why? Why are you doing this?" Emily questioned.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Because you need to learn that actions have consequences, young lady. We have put up with this behaviour for far too long. Its time for you to grow up and act responsibly. I came from a background of high society, I did not raise my daughter to act like this." Her Mother told her. "Why do you I brought you all those nice clothes, the expensive gifts?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I told you that money was wasted on her on." Eric said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Don't you think I don't know that!" Sarah snapped at him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>They were fighting again. Emily started to get anxious and tried to back away slowly towards the staircase. She needed to get away before they brought her into the argument. Or, worse, took it out on her. They didn't do it every time they had an argument. A kid her age shouldn't be listening to adult conversations but Emily managed to pick up a few things whenever she was forced to listen to them yelling. Things like money, cheating, gossiping about people (There were never yelling whenever they were talking about other people. Just making snide comments). Work, drinking and other nightly activity.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Though, she soon wished she stayed where she was. The staircase creaked underneath her as soon as she put her left foot on the step. Her parents stopped yelling at once and quickly turned to face her. Her Mother marked over to her, grab her wrist and pulled her forward. Emily cried out in pain.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Where do you think your going, young lady?" Sarah demanded.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Mummy, stop it! Your hurting me..." Emily cried.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"BE QUIET!" Her Mother yelled. "AND STOP CRYING. YOU LOOK RIDICULOUS!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Emily froze up immediately. She was trying her best to stop crying. Eventually, her sobs quieten down and she soon became a sniffling mess. She could only imagine what she looked like from her Mother's and Father's perspective. No doubt they would mock her appearance, saying that she was nothing more then a clumsy cry baby who just wanted attention. It didn't help that her Mother had gripped her harder but, with one wrong move, her Mother would start yelling at her again.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"That's better. Now then, I've had it with this attitude of yours, young lady. We have done everything in our power to make sure that you grow up to become a fine young lady. And yet you keep throwing it back into our faces. Unless you start behaving yourself you will receive no more gifts from me." Sarah responded. "If you refuse to change then we'll send you to boarding school and they will be a lot more stricter then us."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"That means you will have to do as we say. We do everything to keep you happy, now its your turn to do the same." Eric added with a smirk. "Don't worry, it will be nothing too dramatic. I'm sure you can handle it. You will also be receiving problems to work on each night. And, we expect no less from you other then perfection."</em>
</p><p><em>"I... I understand." Emily </em>conceded.</p><p>
  <em>"Good. Now, go to your room this instant, young lady. You will have no dinner tonight." Her Mother told her "We will figure out a suitable punishment for you in the morning."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>With no hesitation she made her way upstairs and into her bedroom. She was crying again, sniffling quietly as she took in what just happened. Her Father lied about her breaking the vase on purpose. Her Mother believed him and slapped her. Neither one of them comforted her as she was crying. And now she was going to have no dinner tonight. It wasn't her fault. She... She hadn't done anything wrong. Why didn't they believe her?</em>
</p><p>"Emily! Emily, Wake up!"</p><hr/><p>Javier was just about to call it a night when he heard something coming from Emily's room. It sounded like she was crying. Javier went closer to her door and listen in for any signs of trouble. It didn't sound like anyone was in her room. A nightmare, perhaps? Living with Miguel meant that he was no stranger to nightmares so he could easily identify one in a flash. Maybe she was having trouble sleeping? If that's the case then he didn't want to alarm her by opening the door all to quickly. That would only cause more distress.</p><p>"- Your hurting me..."</p><p>Alarm bells went off in Javier's head. Somebody was hurting Emily! He open the door to her room, as quietly as possible, and took in the sight before him. The covers were crumpled and one of the pillows had fallen onto the floor. What really alarm Javier was that Emily was thrashing around, sweat was dripping down her forehead as she changed her sleeping position frequently. She kept mumbling the words "Sorry." and "Mummy." but it sounded like her cries were going unnoticed. Javier went over to her.</p><p>"Emily! Emily, Wake up!" Javier said as he gently woke her.</p><p>Emily woke up with a start. She was panting as she looked around the room, almost like she was expecting something. Javier sat down on the bed in front of her and scoop her up into his arms, bringing her in for hug. Emily had been startled by the sudden movement. She wondered if something was going to happen to her. Yet, nothing happened. She soon realise that she was being hug by Javier. She returned her hug and buried her face into his chest.</p><p>"Javi..." Emily mumbled.</p><p>"Hey, little one. I didn't mean to startled you. You were having a nightmare. Its alright now. Your safe." Javier comforted her.</p><p>He started to hum as he rock her gently. Strange. She couldn't recall being comforted like this before. Actually, when was the last time she was comforted like this? Her parents barley noticed her anymore and, when they did she was probably going to get scolded or her Mother had brought her another expensive gift. She thought Javier would've did when she woke him up but he was being so gently with her.</p><p>"Did I wake you up?" She asked.</p><p>"No. I was just about to go to sleep when I heard you crying. Then you mentioned something about being hurt..." Javier replied.</p><p>That's when it hit him. The words she was muttering in her sleep... Has her Mother hurt her before? Miguel had told him that Emily was running away from home because her parents were arguing but... was that just it. You don't just run away from home without a reason, even if it was just for attention. But Miguel told him that Emily's Mother would often give her gifts so he didn't think it was that. Unless... the gifts were for something else.</p><p>Why was she doing that in the first place? Affection? Late birthday gifts? Bribery?</p><p>
  <em>"Bribery for her silence, I bet. If her Mother is hurting her Daughter then, in order to stop her from telling somebody, she would give Emily expensive gifts to keep her quiet. And, it doesn't help that her Father has some involvement in this as well." Javier thought.</em>
</p><p>"Um. Javi."</p><p>"Huh. Oh. Sorry, Emily, I was thinking about something." Javier apologised. "How about I make us some hot chocolate?"</p><p>"Hot chocolate? Is that when you warm up chocolate and it starts to get all gooey and melty?" Emily asked.</p><p>Javier chuckled. "Sort of. Its more of a warm drink with milk, chocolate powder and whipped cream on top. Come on, I'll show you."</p><p>Carefully, Javier carried her downstairs. Emily had never been carried before so she was practically hanging on for dear life in case Javier dropped her. They entered the kitchen and, with his free hand, Javier turned on the kitchen light. He placed Emily on the work surface and started to work on the hot chocolate for both of them.</p><p>She watched as Javier placed chocolate, cocoa power and sugar into a saucepan and whisked it together. He then added milk and went to heat it on the stove on a medium heat. He raised the temperature and tended to the mixture every so often by whisking it until it was ready. He pour the drink into two cups and topped it with marshmallows. As they were waited to for it to cool down Javier told her that he learnt to make it from his Padre and went onto to say that it was better with marshmallows then whipped cream. When Javier said it was ready Emily carefully picked it up and took the first sip.</p><p>"So? What do you think?" Javier asked.</p><p>"Its delicious." Emily complimented. "Thanks, Javi."</p><p>"No problem, Emmy." Javier replied. "So, about your nightmare, do you want to talk about it?"</p><p>"I broke a vase..." Emily whispered. "And, my parents were yelling at me..."</p><p>"What happened?" Javier asked.</p><p>"Well, in my house, we used to have this blue vase in the hallway. Mummy told me it was an antique but it belonged to her Grandmother so she wouldn't sell it. I was looking at it and -" There was a brief moment of pause. Javier took notice of that. "I knocked it over. Mummy and Daddy weren't happy with me when they found out what I had done."</p><p>"Really?" Javier questioned. Emily didn't miss a beat and nodded in response. "Then why did you hesitate when you were talking about your nightmare?"</p><p>"Hesitate?" Emily repeated.</p><p>"You were about to explain how the vase was knocked onto the floor but you hesitated and changed your answer." Javier told her. "You took responsibility for breaking the vase but I don't think that's how it happened. Your not in trouble, Emmy, but you do need to tell me what really happened in order to help you."</p><p>Emily was struggling to explain herself. She want to tell him, really she did, but she was afraid. Afraid of what might happen to her should she tell Javier the truth. Javier could sense the brunette's inner conflict and assured her that nothing would happen to her. If anything whatever she told him would be helpful for those want to help her. Emily decided to tell him the truth.</p><p>"Daddy shoved me into the table. The vase wobbled and fell to the ground. I was crying because I had just been shoved into the table, he was yelling at me instead of comforting me. Its fine now, though. I'm sort of used to it. Anyway Mummy came into the hallway and noticed the vase in pieces on the floor. She didn't even notice me until Daddy lied about what really happened. She... She..." Emily started to clarify but, when she brought up what her Mother did her, she started blubbering "She slapped me when I tried to apologise."</p><p>"Dios mííío" Javier muttered.</p><p>Emily took a moment to compose herself. She was still sniffling so Javier past her a tissue so that she could blow her nose.</p><p>"Thank you." Emily thanked before continuing. "They continued yelling at me, they were accusing me being disobedient. But, I know that's not true. I have been on my best behaviour for them. Mummy even brought up the gifts for me, Daddy said that the money was wasted on me. They started yelling at each other and I tired to get away. But, they noticed me trying going upstairs and Mummy grabbed my wrist and pulled me forward. They told me that unless I changed my attitude then they were going to send me to boarding school. They also said that I was going to do things for them from now on and I went to my room without dinner."</p><p>"What did they make you do?" Javier asked. He was dreading the worse.</p><p>"Its was just chores like tidying up the house whenever it was messing. The vase hadn't been picked up so when I came downstairs the following day Mummy made me do that. It was things they didn't want to do whenever they were busy or... drinking too much." Emily told him.</p><p>Javier nodded as he took it what Emily told him, silently thanking that stars that it wasn't anything too graphic. …It was a lot but it also cleared up what was really happening. It made sense now. Emily wasn't just running away from her home because her parents were arguing with each other. No, she ran away because they were abusing her. They were taken advantage of their daughter and making her work for them. It was one thing to tidy up your room and make your own bed but, by the look of things, Emily's parents were forcing her to do their work. Since her Father was an alcoholic that meant she probably had to clean up his mess whenever he was sick or pick up his bottles or cans when he was finished with them.</p><p>"Javi... do I have to go back to them?" Emily asked.</p><p>"I don't think so. Its not much but we have proof that your parents are abusive. Although, I don't think a recollection of past events will be enough. Without proper proof your parents could easily say that your lying." Javier replied. "Hm. I wonder... Emily, about the vase, is there anything else you can remember about it?.</p><p>"It was blue, very plain looking. I could see through to the other side and there were a few cracks on it." Emily recalled. "Why?"</p><p>"My Madre like to collection antiques every now and then." Javier told her. "Sometimes she would take us with her, point out what's real and what's fake. It can't have been an antique. Antiques have a high value because of their age and quality, it can't have been worth much if the vase is of poor quality."</p><p>"It did look sort of cheep looking." Emily agreed. "But, they must have a lot of money, right? And, they both have high paying jobs. How else did Mummy buy me all those gifts?"</p><p>"Maybe... Unless the vase or the money was stolen." Javier replied. "Its just a theory, Emily, but if your Padre said the money was wasted on you then that might be they intended to keep it for themselves. "</p><p>"Oh." Emily said. "... Javi, did they ever love me?"</p><p>"I don't know, Princess. They might have done but things change. I don't know what happened to them in order for them to become so cold but, whatever it is, what they are doing to you isn't normal." Javier replied honestly. "They abuse you, manipulate you, give you gifts in order to keep quiet and they neglect you. And, they have their own personal problems as well. Problems that need to be dealt with in order for the three of you to become a proper family again. But, by the look of things, they are refusing to change. They don't deserve to be your parents."</p><p>"How do you know?" Emily asked.</p><p>Javier hesitated. It meant diving into Miguel past in order for her to understand. He didn't want to do that without Miguel's permission. Maybe he didn't have to tell her everything, he would leave it for Miguel to explain. But, he could give her some insight.</p><p>"Miguel went through the same thing your going through now. I can't tell you everything, you would have to ask him about it, but I can tell you somethings. A few years ago Miguel wasn't living with his parents. He didn't know where they were and he mostly kept in the dark about certain things. He was living with a friend of his Uncle's and she had a partner who was abusive towards him." Javier revealed. "Eventually, Miguel found his Padre, or rather he found him. He took Miguel in after one horrible night where he was in danger. They were living together for a while but, eventually, he found out some horrible things about his Padre. His Padre wanted Miguel to come away with him to their new home but Miguel refused. Things haven't been the same between the two of them since."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Is it safe to come home?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>According to the information they had gathered, both Mr and Mrs Porter had a pretty busy work schedule. Eric Porter worked in accounting whilst Sarah Porter worked in graphic design, though according to her degrees she was much more compatible for business and marketing. That might have something to do with her family background. She was born as Sarah Annabelle Hendrix and her Father, Edward Hendrix, was in charge of rather successful business company - one that dealt with ceramics. Mrs Porter doesn't have any contact with biological family and, prior to marrying Mr Porter, Sarah went missing and the parents refused to disclose any information of her whereabouts.</p><p>They had stated numerous times that the whole ordeal wasn't suspicious as some people believed it was. Though, according to rumours, there had been some sort of disagreement between Sarah and her parents. Nobody knew what the entire situation had been about as the security footage had been erased and the disagreement had actually happened at Mr Hendrix's company rather then at home. Apparently, something went missing at the company but nobody had any concrete evidence.</p><p>The best time to interrogate them was before they went to work.</p><p>This wasn't the first time the police were visiting the Porters either. They had been several complaints made about the family, all of which happened during the evening. The neighbours have reported several shouting matches between Sarah and Eric, with one incident leading to Mrs Porter getting attacked by her husband. Or, at least, that's what the neighbours saw. There was no proof of bruise marks on Sarah's face or body. There was, however, clear scenes of a fight happening though Mr and Mrs Porter had stated in the past that there have been break-ins and that's why the room was in a mess.</p><p>Eric Porter had also been arrested for drunk and disorderly behaviour three times. The first two times had been minor cases which lead to the man spending the night in a jail ceil in order to sober up. The third incident had lead to Mr Porter being banned from the bar after getting into a fight with another man. The man in questioned end up having several bruises, a bloody nose and a black eye.</p><p>Though, what was more strange was that each time the police had visited the house nobody had actually seen the daughter in question. She seemed to be missing every time her parents were arguing with each other. Maybe she was just hiding somewhere so that she wouldn't hear her parents arguing with each other, no child should hear there parents arguing with each other after all. But, according the information there operator gave them, Emily hadn't been reported missing by her parents and her last known whereabouts were at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria before the night guard took her home with him.</p><p>Again, strange, but the circumstances were unavoidable.</p><p>Officer Gabriel Simmons was the one in charge on the case. The man was in his late twenties with neat blonde hair and black eyes. Whilst the man was a good officer he was known to act before observing the situation. Seeing as it was a case of a runaway child and possible child abuse the chief of police had instructed Gabriel to be delicately a possible. Cases like these weren't common for Mr Simmons - really now, they should go to someone level headed rather then someone like Gabriel (But, said person was unavailable at the moment as she was working on going murder case because her partner was incompetent and no longer amongst the living. If he was working on that case it would've been solved by now.) But, nevertheless Gabriel accepted the case anyway.</p><p>Accompanying Mr Simmons was Penelope Coleman. She had wavy ginger hair and black eyes. She was wearing a blue suit and black flat shoes and on her face was a pair of glasses. When she was informed about what happened Penelope immanently took the case. Whilst she didn't have any children of her own, not yet at least, she did have two nieces and she had already seen her far share of child abuse cases.</p><p>Gabriel pulled up to the Porter's house. The house look nice and somebody was doing a good job maintaining the garden. There was a car parked in front of the garage so at least one of the Porter's was still in the house. Gabriel and Penelope exited out of the car and walked up to the front door. Penelope knock on the door. A minute later the door opened, revealing Sarah Porter already dressed for work. She was wearing a black skirt suit with white collar shirt and black heals.</p><p>"Mrs Porter?"</p><p>"Yes?"</p><p>"I am Penelope Coleman. I'm from child protection serves. I'm making enquires about your daughter." Penelope greeted. She gestured to the blond behind her. "This is Officer Gabriel Simmons from the local police department. He's helping me with my enquires today."</p><p>"Oh, I see." Sarah said. "I wasn't expecting any visitors this morning and I have to go to work soon."</p><p>"This won't take too long, Mrs Porter." Penelope assured her. "We're well aware of yours and your husband's busy work schedules. That's why we decided to visit you now instead of later."</p><p>"I see. Well then you best come in." Sarah said.</p><p>She allowed Penelope and Gabriel to enter her house. She told them to go into the living room - the first door on the left - before making her way to the kitchen to make tea. Penelope entered first. Gabriel lingered for just a moment, he was keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. There weren't any family photos on the wall or on the console table - there were three photos on the table but there was more nature photos rather then family photos. Judging by the way that the photos were set up, Gabriel could tell that there was something missing on the table that should've been there.</p><p>He looked down for just a moment and saw something sharp under the table. He bent down and picked it. It looked like a fragment of some kind. The piece was small and blue. A piece of a vase, by chance? Whatever it was Gabriel placed it in his pocket and entered the living room. Penelope was already sitting down. She was reading through the notes she made whilst they were driving to the Porter's house. Taking a seat next to Penelope, Gabriel took out his own notes on the case.</p><p>It was more of a condense verse of the report made by the officer who came to the Porter's house before. According to the report the living room was in a mess. Various objects had been thrown around the room and, when they were asked about what happened, Sarah and Eric had insisted that someone had broken into the house and was trying to rob them. The neighbours had, once again, complained about the noise. There was no music playing but they did hear yelling coming from inside the house. They could also hear something smashing from the garden. When the officer checked all windows one of them had been destroyed by a photo frame which was found in the garden. Mr and Mrs Porter told him that the robber used it in order to escape.</p><p>"I don't like this one bit, Mrs Coleman. Mrs Porter is far to calm for my liking. She doesn't seem concerned by the fact that her daughter is missing." Gabriel muttered.</p><p>Penelope nodded in agreement. It was a little suspicious that Mrs Porter wasn't more concerned for her daughter's safety. Perhaps she didn't know that her daughter was missing at the moment. But, surely, one of them would've notice Emily's disappearance. Emily was only six years old, unless she was being home schooled somehow, they would still have to take her to school.</p><p>Mrs Porter entered the room five minutes later, a tea tray was in her hands. Sarah placed the tea tray down onto the table and took a seat on the couch opposite Gabriel and Penelope.</p><p>"So, what can I help you with?" Sarah asked.</p><p>"Well, before we get to the reason as to why we are here, perhaps you could tell us more about Emily?" Penelope suggested.</p><p>"Emily is a sweet girl, even if she can be a little... childish at times. I know its an absurd word to give to a child but she can be so curious and hyperactive at times, I can't help but wonder where she gets that energy from. She doing surprising well at school. She's going good in her lessons, she enjoys reading the most whenever she's at home or at school." Sarah told her.</p><p>"And, What about friends, Mrs Porter?" Penelope inquired.</p><p>"Friends? Well, as far as me and Eric know Emily doesn't have any friends. I know its important for a kid her age to have a few friends of her own but... I believe Emily has trouble making friends. I asked her teacher about it and she told me that Emily's fine interacting with other kids but she mainly keeps to herself during playtime." Sarah explained.</p><p>"I'm sure you don't need to be told this, Mrs Porter, but it is very important for a child to have friends. Not only will it help your daughters social skills and boost her happiness and confidence, it will give her a better shot at working with people when she gets older. It will make her feel that she belongs with people. "Penelope reminded her. "Perhaps you or your husband can help her? You already said she's fine interacting with other children so maybe she just needs a confidence boost? Or, perhaps you could arrange a play date with one of the Mothers?"</p><p>"We've tried that but I don't see how..."</p><p>"Mrs Porter, are you aware of the fact that your child has runaway from home?" Gabriel questioned, interrupting the women's train of thought. He didn't miss the look Penelope gave him but he pressed on anyway. "We received a concerning phone call from the manager of Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria." Gabriel tried not to sneer as he told Mrs Porter the name of the Pizzeria. "Your daughter was seen at the Pizzeria at 10pm on Monday night. That was a little over twenty-four hours ago. According to the Manager it has something to do with you and your husband."</p><p>"Runaway?" Mrs Porter repeated before scowling. "That girl..." Sarah trailed off for just a moment before composing herself and shaking her head. "My apologise. We've been having a bit of an issue with our daughter at the moment. She keeps disobeying us. I wouldn't be surprise if she was doing this just to get our attention."</p><p>"What do you mean?" Penelope asked.</p><p>"Emily has been... rather difficult lately. Me and my husband have tried to raise our daughter to the best of our ability and, whilst things were okay to begin with, Emily just keeps being naughty." Sarah explained. "She was looking for one of her teddy bears about... two, maybe three weeks ago. Anyway, both me and Eric told her that we hadn't seen the teddy bear, I even told that she might of misplaced it in her bedroom, but she simply didn't listen to us and started making a mess in the living room. We tried to stop her but it didn't work."</p><p>"Why didn't you help her?" Penelope questioned.</p><p>"We're both busy that day. I was making dinner in the kitchen and Eric was finishing up some of his work from the office." The brunette replied. "If she had just waited then we might of been able to help her. But, she decided to act instead of waiting."</p><p>It took every ounce of strength Gabriel had to not not let out a groan. This conversation wasn't going anyway. If anything they just learnt that Emily was just another naughty child that needed to be punished - Perhaps Sarah and her husband could be stricter with their daughter, that way she would stop disobeying them. (But, that was just Gabriel's opinion). Sarah needs to realise that having a runaway child out there meant that said child was in danger. Mr Cawthon might trust his employee but that doesn't mean that Emily was safe from danger. Who knows what might happen whilst Emily was in someone else's care.</p><p>Then there was a possibly of Emily being found by her Father. If Mr Cawthon and his employee were concerned with the way Mr Porter was treating his daughter, which was reasonable as no parent should degrade their child, then perhaps it was time he took control of the conversation. And, considering the fact that Mr Porter was arrested in the past and thus capable of physical violence, then he needed to make that point clear as well.</p><p>Gabriel decided to go a different route.</p><p>"Mrs Porter, has your husband ever been violent to you?" Gabriel inquired.</p><p>"Violent?" Sarah said before chuckling. "Oh, please. The man likes to drink after a long day of work but he has never been violent towards me. No, the only thing he has ever done to me was said some rather colourful words. They don't affect me, however. I have rather thick skin."</p><p>"Well, you might be able to take those words, Mrs Porter, but what about your daughter?" Gabriel responded. "What happens if your husband is drunk and he ends up lashing out at your daughter? Must I remind you your husband has been arrested for GBH with intent, Mrs Porter."</p><p>"Then I would remove my daughter from the room before he could attack her." Sarah replied. "I know I'm bit shorter then my husband, Officer, but I know how to deal with him when he's drunk. Besides, Eric mainly stays in the living room or the kitchen when he's had to much to drunk so Emily could easily stay out of his way."</p><p>"Even if that's the case, Mrs Porter, there is always long term effects that a child could go through. Seeing a parent under the affects of alcohol could impact their future. It could mean that Emily could become an alcoholic in the future. Another possible scenario is that Eric ends up doing something that he might regret and ends up harming Emily." Penelope added.</p><p>Sarah looked thoughtful for a moment before replying. "So, what your saying is my daughter is in danger if I allow her to be near her drunken Father?"</p><p>"That is what we are suggesting, Mrs Porter. Your husband's history with alcohol and violence is one of several outcomes." Penelope replied.</p><p>Sarah was in deep thought. She couldn't stop Eric from drinking, that was his choice and he was allowed to do whatever he wanted. But, she would never forgive him for turning their daughter into something like him. Emily was... already in enough trouble as it is and she still had a lot of work to do before... things could be back to normal again. She just had a few little... quirks that needed to be sorted out. But, she would never allow Emily to become like her Father. It would ruin everything.</p><p>
  <em>Speaking of which, where was Emily now?</em>
</p><p>"Where is my daughter now?" Sarah inquired.</p><p>"I'm afraid we're not allowed to disclose that information." Penelope told her. "But, she is perfectly safe, Mrs Porter."</p><p>"But, why can't you tell me where she is?" Sarah questioned.</p><p>"Because we haven't finished our inquires yet and we have yet to determine if its safe for Emily to come home." Penelope replied.</p><p>"Safe?" There was a look of horror on Sarah's face. However, Penelope couldn't determine if it was for her daughter's wellbeing or... something else. "O-Of course its safe for her to come home. I know my husband is a major problem at the moment and we can easily work on that. But, what about me? Do you honest think I'm a threat to my daughter's safety?"</p><p>Penelope sighed. "There is that possibility, Mrs Porter. Whilst I'm not suggesting that threat is a physical one, we have heard some rather... concerning things about how you look after your daughter. You shower your daughter with gifts dresses and dolls to be precise. Its not a bad thing, Mrs Porter, but it could be seen as you trying to force your daughter to like certain things. There's also the concern that you are keeping your daughter in all day and not allowing her to go outside which, again, could effect your daughter's development."</p><p>"That..." Sarah hesitated. "Well, you know how dangerous the world can be. I'm just trying to protect my daughter."</p><p>"And, there's nothing wrong with that, Mrs Porter. But, children need to experience the outside world or they will end up living their life in constant fear." Penelope said.</p><p>"I... Perhaps you are right, Mrs Coleman." Sarah relented.</p><p>Penelope was caught of guard by that. She seemed so... defeated by the realisation. Coming to terms with the realisation that you might have effected your child future can be devastating. Penelope could tell that the women meant well and she was trying to protect her daughter - even then she really should do something about her husband. Maybe Mrs Porter wasn't the problem after all and just made bad decisions with regards to raising her daughter...</p><p>And yet...</p><p>Sarah's left eye twitched.</p><p>Penelope blinked. Suddenly, she just got the feeling that she had been lied to. Maybe she had been deceive by the brunette's words. Something just didn't sit right with her and she couldn't help but wonder if Sarah was hiding something from her. Now that she thought about it Sarah seemed hesitant to talk about something. And, earlier when she was talking about her husband, she didn't seem to speak out about him. Instead, she seem to be either defending or deflecting his actions.</p><p>What was really alarming was the way Sarah had been talking about her daughter. She had spoke highly of her daughter to begin with but, once she started talking about her daughter's misbehaviour - was that true or not? - it sounded like she was degrading her daughter. Perhaps the incident in the living room hadn't been entirely true after all. Didn't the report Gabriel had mention something about a 'smashing' sound? What if the scene wasn't cause by Emily but by her parents instead.</p><p>What about the incident at the party? Emily had been left entirety alone whilst her parents were at work. Emily didn't even leave until one of them had finished work. Anything could of happened to her and, considering the place was Freddy Fazbear Pizzeria, she could've been kidnapped or... Penelope had to stop herself from even thinking about it, what happened at Freddy's in the past was a tragedy and should never of happened in the first place.</p><p>"Mrs Porter, if you don't mind, we would like to search Emily's bedroom." Penelope requested.</p><p>Sarah had been startled by the request, even Gabriel was frowning at her. Poor fool, Penelope thought. He probably hoped that this was just another house visit. But, there were clear warning signs that couldn't be ignored.</p><p>"Is that really necessary?" Sarah questioned.</p><p>"It is just routine protocol, Mrs Porter." Penelope responded. <em>"Is it just me or does she really want us out of here?"</em></p><p>"Well, I suppose you still need to finish your inquires. As soon as you get upstairs her room is second on left." Sarah said. "I'll been in the kitchen if you need me. I need to make a phone call."</p><p>Sarah left without waiting for Penelope's response. Odd, she would've thought Sarah would of put up more of fight then give into her request so easily. Maybe she thought they wouldn't find anything in Emily's room. What Penelope needed to do was to find something out of place. A single drawing or a diary entry could help as well. With that in mind Penelope made her way upstairs and enter Emily's bedroom. Gabriel followed soon after though, as soon as he entered the room, he suddenly wished he hadn't. Penelope couldn't help but feel sorry for him.</p><p>Emily room was... Well, there was a lot of pink. It was a beautiful bedroom but, in both Penelope's and Gabriel's personal opinion, it was probably enough to overwhelm a child. There was a canopy bed with white fluffy pillows and a pink duvet. There was a small rectangular table and two chairs in pastels - they could of been used for a tea party, Penelope thought. There was bookcase, a wardrobe, a toy chest. There was sofa by the window with a pink blanket over it. Next to the wardrobe was a pink and white table with hand held box drawers, there was a small light stand on top of the table and a few papers and coloured pencils. Sadly, there was nothing on the papers.</p><p>"So, what are we looking for?" Gabriel asked.</p><p>"Well, if someone's abusing their child they might leave some type of warning signs in their bedroom. We're looking for proof that Emily has been hurt either physically or mentally." Penelope told him.</p><p>She started with the bookcase whilst Gabriel went through the desk. There were different types of books on shelf, ranging from picture books to child friendly fairy tales to children books. Although, there was one book out of place. Penelope reached out for her and removed it from the shelf. The cover was black with gold markings on the four corners of the cover. In the middle of the cover was a compass with a scenic background behind it. It was a book on pirates. The story was about a fictional privateer chasing after a female pirate captain. There was a replica of a treasure map, drawings, journal entries and pop-up sections.</p><p>Once she got to the back of the book there was a folded piece of paper. Penelope placed the book down, pick up the piece of paper and open it. There were several drawings. There was a drawing of a vase that had been shaded in blue, underneath that was a drawing of a smashed vase on the ground. there was a drawing of a man and a women - Emily's parents, no doubt - and a drawing of a child. The parents looked angry whilst the child was crying. Penelope frowned as she tried to read the writing. Some of the words had been scribbled out but she could make out a few of them.</p><p>
  <em>"They l̶i̶e̶d̶ I didn't b̶r̶e̶a̶k̶ it." "They h̶u̶r̶t̶ ̶m̶e̶" "I̶t̶s̶ ̶m̶y̶ ̶f̶a̶u̶l̶t̶"</em>
</p><p>"Penelope, you should read this."</p><p>Gabriel was standing in front of the wardrobe. The doors were open and, as Penelope walked over to the wardrobe, she could see a collection of dress all hung up on hangers as well as some other clothes. In Gabriel's hand was a diary. The blonde gave Penelope the diary and she started to read it. There were a few entries. Some of them were mundane but, there were two entries that caught Penelope's attention the most.</p><p>
  <em>"I saw Mummy with another man today. She was kissing that man, like she does with Daddy but she was all over him. I managed to get away before they spotted me. I asked Mummy about it later and she warned me not to tell Daddy. She told me it must remind our little secret and that Daddy will get very angry with the both of us if I tell him. She said 'You can't tell him what happened and, if you do tell him, he will be very angry with us. It must remind our secret or Daddy will leave us. And, you don't want that do you, Emily?' I promised her that I wouldn't tell him'"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I can't sleep right now. I'm so hungry. I want to go downstairs and grab something from the kitchen but Mummy and Daddy are still down there and if they see me they'll hurt me again. They still think I'm the one who broke the vase. That's not what really happened. Daddy pushed me into the table, it fell down after I was shoved into the table. But, they don't believe me. Why won't they believe me?"</em>
</p><p>"They made her go to bed without any dinner." Penelope muttered.</p><p>She put the piece of paper next to the diary and compared the two pieces of evidence. It was clear to her that the second entry that she read was connected to the the drawings on the piece of paper. And, if that was true - she would need Emily's statement first before any arrests were made - then that meant that Emily was being abused by her parents and she needed to be removed from them as soon as possible. Gabriel was re-reading the journal entry. He frowned once he saw the part that mentioned the vase and remembered what he found under the table.</p><p>"I found this downstairs earlier. It was hiding under the table." Gabriel said, pulling the fragment he saw earlier.</p><p>"This might be a piece of the vase that had been accidently smashed by Emily." Penelope mused. "But, what was it doing under the table?"</p><p>"Perhaps Sarah or her husband missed it when they were tidying up the remains." The blonde guessed.</p><p>Penelope didn't say anything. She just nodded her head as she read through the diary again, hoping to find more signs of child abuse or any other references to the incident with the vase. Surely, Sarah or Eric would've done a better job of tidying up the mess. So, why was there still a piece of it on the floor?</p><p>Unless... they weren't the ones who picked up the remains of the vase.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. The past still hurts.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Javier had told Mike about what happened last night. As expected, not only was Mike appalled by what he heard, he was also sympathetic towards Emily. He knew what it was like to be abused by someone, both physically and mentally. Mike choose not to tell Emily everything, there was something Jonathan had said about his Mother and reason as to why he had been abandoned by his family and raised by Aisha instead, but he told her everything else that he felt comfortable with.</p><p>In return Emily gave them more insight about the vase incident whilst Javier was making some inquires with his Mother. The day after the incident the vase hadn't been picked up and, as part of her parent's demands, her Mother made her pick it up all by herself. She told her that, seeing as she wouldn't amount to anything, it would better for her to start practicing to be a house wife. Seeing as the pieces were so small, Emily recalled cutting her hands on the pieces. When she was finished she asked her Mother if she could stop the bleeding. Mrs Porter refused to help her and told her to do herself.</p><p>"How long has this been going on?" Mike asked her when she was finished.</p><p>"At least for a while. The birthday party happened back in March. I was looking for the teddy bear back in May. The incident with the vase happened last month." Emily recalled.</p><p>"And how long have your parents been arguing for?" Mike inquired.</p><p>"I'm not sure. Over a year, maybe? They would have little arguments with each other but they started getting more violent one day." The brunette replied. "They never took their anger out on me but, things changed after March. Dad had been like that for a while. He was always moody, especially when he got back from work. Mum just told me he was having a difficult day at work. She would always try to make me forget about it by buying me gifts or promising me treats. If it wasn't for that then it was because I had seen something I shouldn't have."</p><p>"Like what?" Mike asked.</p><p>"Mom was having an affair with another man." Emily told him. "I saw them on the couch one day. She was on top of him, kissing him or his neck, whilst he was touching..."</p><p>"Okay, okay, okay. No need to go any further. I get the idea." Mike interrupted. "You should never have seen that, Emily."</p><p>"Why? Don't you and Javi do that all the time?" Emily puzzled.</p><p>"Emily, your... your six years old, you shouldn't be asking about things like that." Mike spluttered, clearly embarrassed by what his heard. His face was turning red and Emily couldn't help but laugh at him. Thankfully, Javier was nowhere near the room or he would be teasing him about it.</p><p>Emily on the other hand...</p><p>"Then why are you are you going red? Are you embarrassed?" Emily teased.</p><p>He refused to answer her, having turned away from her instead. No, they didn't do stuff like that. Just kisses and cuddles because Mike didn't feel ready to take to take it to the next level. That's wasn't the only thing either. He was afraid of getting hurt again. He knew Javier would never hurt him, but he just got so used to people hurting him that he was afraid of what Javier would do to him if they decided to take it to the next level. The worse thing was Javier didn't know that. He should just tell him about it, it was silly really, but he had never been good at admitting his feelings to anyone.</p><p>Mike shook his head. He shouldn't be talking about these types of things anyway, lest of all thinking about them.</p><p>"Mike?"</p><p>"Emily, please, just drop it. I don't want to talk about it." Mike insisted.</p><p>"Oh, okay." Emily said. That's when she remember the conversation she had with Javier before she went back to bed. She had brought up the idea of how to ask Mike about certain things and Javier told her that it wasn't a good idea to to that. Because of the abusive he had a difficult time opening up to people. Instead, he recommended talking about other things. Like something to lighten the mood. "Um. We can talk about something else if you want."</p><p>Mike nodded, already catching onto what she was trying to do. "Alright. Oh, how about I tell you what happened during my shift last night?"</p><p>"What happened?" Emily asked.</p><p>"Lets just say we're keeping Foxy and Bonnie away from the paints from now on. Poor Freddy got drenched in white paint and Foxy gave him a new name. He's now Freddy the polar bear." Mike replied, doing a dramatic wave once he revealed Freddy's new name.</p><p>"That's just silly." Emily laughed.</p><p>"Well, blame Foxy. He's the one who came up with the idea." Mike said.</p><p>"Am I missing something here?"</p><p>They turned to the doorway. Javier was standing there, in his hands as a piece of paper. He walked into the living room some more. His eyes kept shifting between Mike and Emily, looking for any signs of mischief. Mike's face was natural. Emily was trying really hard to remain calm but her eyes were betraying her, and she was giggling a lot.</p><p>"So? What's going on then?" He asked them.</p><p>"I was telling Emily about what happened last night." Mike told him. "There was an incident with white paint last night, and Freddy was completely drenched in it. We're keeping Foxy and Bonnie away from the paints from now on."</p><p>"I see." Javier commented. <em>Ah well. He'll get them another time .</em>"Anyway, I think I've made some progress with the vase. Not much but at least its something."</p><p>"Did you contact your Mother?" Mike asked.</p><p>"Si and, whist we didn't find out more out the vase, she did, however, tell me something interesting." Javier replied. Next, he turned to Emily. "Emmy, do you know what your Mother's maiden name is?"</p><p>"Maiden name?" Emily frowned. "What's that?"</p><p>"Its your Mother's surname before she married your father." Mike told her.</p><p>"Oh" She thought about it for a moment, thinking back to the conversations she had with her Mother - The more happier ones, that is. She realised that her Mother never talked about her family, expect for her Grandmother. But, she never gave Emily her name. "No. She didn't like talking about her family. Which was strange because she told me the vase belonged to her Grandmother."</p><p>"Hmm. I thought as much. Well, before she married your Father, your Mother's full name was Sarah Annabelle Hendrix. She is the Daughter of Edward and Colette Hendrix, and is the sole successor to Mr Hendrix's company." Javier revealed. "They are your Grandparents, Emily."</p><p>"My Grandparents." Emily said.</p><p>She never thought she had any. Her Mother never talked about them, never told her anything about them. She just presumed that her Mother was no longer in touch with them. Did that mean she lied to her then?</p><p>"So what your saying is, should anything happen to either Sarah or her Grandparents, then Emily will become the successor of Mr Hendrix's company." Mike said. "Well, unless he choose to hand it over to someone else."</p><p>"Exactly." The brunette agreed. "Although, there is that rumour... "</p><p>"Rumour? What rumour?" The redhead questioned.</p><p>"Before she married Mr Porter Sarah went missing. She wasn't... capture and held for ransom money. She just disappeared on the day on the incident. Her parents didn't disclose any information about the incident but, apparently, there was some sort of argument between Sarah and her parents." Javier told him, being careful with his words. "Don't you find it a bit strange that Sarah has a vase in her possession that belonged to her Grandmother but has the Hendrix symbol on it?"</p><p>To emphasise his point, Javier showed Mike and Emily the piece of paper in his hands. On the piece of paper were two images. The first was a vase produced by the Hendrix company. The second was an image of the Hendrix company's logo.</p><p>"Oh. That's the vase Mom has." Emily said.</p><p>Javier smiled. "Thought so."</p><p>"But, Javi, How did the vase end up in Sarah's possession in the first place if she has no contact with her family?" Mike questioned.</p><p>"Hmm. That is a good question, Miguel. Me and my Madre couldn't figure that one out either." The brunette replied. "That's why my Madre decided to set up a meeting with Mr Hendrix."</p><p>"What? Really?" Mike gasped.</p><p>Javier nodded. "Mr Hendrix and my Madre have had a few dealing in the past. Sometimes he has a few antique that come into his possession and she appraises them for him. I don't know how much he's willing to tell me but we need all the information we can get on Sarah Porter if we are going to have a chance at getting Emily away from her Parents."</p><p>Mike nodded. "Well, at least its something."</p><p>Hopefully, Mr Hendrix would be able to listen to him. They needed more information of Sarah and, as of right now, Mr Hendrix was the only person who could help them.</p>
<hr/><p>Jeremy had decided to show his findings to Scott and, needless to say, the manager was fuming. Jeremy didn't blame him, though he had never seen Scott so wound up before. Usually, the manager was more relaxed but though lately he seemed to be more on edge. Because he didn't know what will happen next, none of them did. They were waiting for Vincent to make his next move and, by the looks of things, it would be this horror attraction whenever it opened up.</p><p>Jeremy watched as the brunette started pacing around the room. He was trying to process the newfound information, trying to figure out why Fazbear Entertainment would stoop so low as to open a horror attraction dedicated to the unsolved mystery's at Freddy's. It was sick, and disrespectful towards the deceased.</p><p>"Just how low can they get?" Scott wondered as he took a seat in his chair.</p><p>"It could be worse. We don't exactly know what the horror attraction will look like yet, least of all know what exactly they will be using it for." Jeremy replied. "They might not end up using the kidnappings for their own advantage."</p><p>"They won't use it, Jeremy. If they do then its going to make them look like hypocrites. They refused to believe that there was something wrong, and they ended up denying everything that happened. That, or they blamed it on something else." Scott remarked. "No. What they will end up going doing is recreating the hauntings as best as they can. They'll probably end up treating it like some sort of haunted house."</p><p>"How are they going to do that then?" The brunette inquired. "They would need some kind of serious equipment to do something like that, won't they?"</p><p>Scott nodded. "Well, they will need some serious lighting effects. Something to create projections. I don't think they will end up fully recreating a Pizzeria, it probably be something smaller. I can seeing them using bits and bobs from the old Pizzerias. They wouldn't actually use actual animatronics. Unless they had someone create something demonic, they would probably use props instead. As we both know, the Toys wouldn't work. They're far too colourful to be used in a horror attraction."</p><p>"...That could work, actually." Jeremy mused. "If they put some serious work into then they're going to have a successful business."</p><p>"Yes. And, that's what concerns me." Scott sighed.</p><p>Jeremy frowned as he heard that. Was there something else Scott was worried about? There was no way Fazbear Entertainment were going to set this up the horror attraction straight away. It would take months to create something like that and, if they were going to base it off unsolved mysteries at Freddy's, then they need to find items relating to the Pizzeria's. There again they could just use said items from the warehouse but why damage good equipment if you can just get it from another place? Besides, they probably move a lot of that stuff around anyway and just give it to another Pizzeria. That way they don't have to spent a lot of money of buying or making new equipment or animatronics.</p><p>"Scott, is there something wrong?" Jeremy asked.</p><p>"I'm worried about our reputation. I didn't exactly tell them about the improvements that we made." Scott admitted. "We spent a lot of time fixing this place. We were the ones who did it. Not Mr Johnson, not Fazbear Entertainment. If Fazbear Entertainment actually manages to pull this off, and they turn this into something its not, then what's going to happen to us? If they end up using some fake narrative or twisting what really happened, then the what will the customers think of us?"</p><p>"We don't know what's going to happen, Scott. Its probably going to be some sort of interactive horror show with a bunch of jump scares." Jeremy replied with a shrug.</p><p>"Is that meant to make thing better?" Scott deadpanned.</p><p>"Um. Maybe?" Jeremy beamed.</p><p>Scott just shook his head as he turned attention back to the article Jeremy gave him. He knew the night guard was just trying to be make things better, but it didn't help in a time of uncertainty. Maybe there was nothing to worry about and this horror attraction would be nothing more then a haunted house knock off. But, at the same time, he couldn't shake the feeling that something horrible was going to happen.</p><p>
  <em>Something that should of remained buried.</em>
</p><p>"When it does open, someone will have to investigate it." Scott decided. "Maybe I'm just beiing paranoid but I can't shake the feeling that something is going to happen inside of that horror attraction. Trouble is I can't tell if its Vincent or the Marionette."</p><p>"About that, Mike doesn't want any involvement in it." Jeremy told him, remembering the conversation he had with Mike the night prior. "He's worried that, when the horror attraction does open up, Vincent will hear about it and end up visiting the place. And, if Mike ends up being the one to investigate the place... Well, you know. He's worried that he's going to get kidnapped again ."</p><p>"He doesn't have to worry about that. I'd rather have Mike work the night shift here then go into that that place. At least he'll be protected by the animatronics. If Vincent does decided to come back here then Mike can hide in the basement and Goldie will be able to seal the doors until he has been dealt with." Scott assured him. That's when he remembered something. "Ah, that reminds me. I was thinking about something last night that would be beneficial for all of us."</p><p>"Really? What is it?" The brunette asked.</p><p>"Well, since we are waiting for Vincent to make his next move, why don't we use that for our advantage and get some training in." Scott explained. "Maybe a few self defence classes, some disarming lessons in case we end up getting attacked from behind. Oh, and we will need some sort of meeting place in case something happens to this place. Goldie's been complaining about the basement getting messy again, and I don't think we can all fit down there."</p><p>Jeremy hummed. "That's a great idea, Scott. It could be our base of operations."</p><p>"Exactly. That way we would be able to monitor the Freddy's locations without anyone finding out. I'd rather keep all of this a secret then having the higher ups finding out about it." Scott said. "If there is a problem with another Freddy's location, and Fazbear Entertainment won't do anything about it, then I guess its up to us to figure out the problem."</p><p>Jeremy agreed with him. It made sense. They needed something bigger then what they were currently working with, and they needed to keep it away from Freddy's. It would be nice to have a place where they could escape from their problems, where they could just be friends without having to deal with some much chaos - to escape from their burdens. Working at Freddy's wasn't a chore but, in some cases, it could just be so stressful at times.</p><p>When was the last time they were all able to hang out without being interrupted by something or someone? Jeremy couldn't remember, and he really wanted to work on his friendship with Mike. They made some progress last night but they still had a long way to go before they could become best of friends again. In fact it would be beneficial for Mike as well. Apart from his home with Javier and Freddy's, Mike didn't have a lot of places where he could feel safe. He could use another place to go so that he could feel more safe.</p><p>
  <em>…It would be nice for him to have a place to go to where Vincent would never find him.</em>
</p><p>Oh, right, speaking about that...</p><p>"I think I've a way of finding out what Vincent's planning next." Jeremy said.</p><p>"Oh? What it is?" Scott inquired. </p><p>"We could always ask Mrs Schmidt for help." Jeremy told him.</p><p>"Mrs Schmidt? You want to ask Samantha for help?" Scott questioned.</p><p>Jeremy could sense the uncertainty in his voice. Truthfully, it wasn't a bad idea - it was the only idea they had at the moment - but he could see why the manager was reluctant to ask her for help. It was the idea of Samantha seeing her husband again that Scott didn't like. Would she be able to keep her emotions in check whilst she was around him? Much like Scott and Fran, Samantha had been appalled at what Vincent had done. She practically went into Mama bear mode and told them that Vincent would pay for what he did. Mike had to beg her not to go after him.</p><p>She promised she wouldn't... for now.</p><p>"Yes. I feel like she's the one who could get close to Vincent without alarming him - You know, since she is in a incorporeal state like the missing kids. She wouldn't have to get near him, of course. Just close enough so that she would be able to gather some evidence." Jeremy clarified. "Besides, I wouldn't want to put the kids in danger and Goldie is busy looking for the Toy animatronics. It would make sense to have someone go in who Vincent wouldn't expect."</p><p>Scott nodded slowly. "I would've to think about it. Don't get me wrong, Jeremy. It is a good idea but I need to know what Samantha and Mike think first. It wouldn't be fair to make decision without having them present."</p><p>"That's fair. I just suggesting the idea. It wouldn't be right if we didn't include Mike's input." Jeremy said.</p><p>
  <em>Because he wasn't making the same mistakes again. This was a fresh start for the pair of them.</em>
</p>
<hr/><p>The door to the attic was open.</p><p>Emily had been looking for Mike when she noticed it. Javier had already left for the Hendrix company, and Mike had told her that he needed to fetch some paints from upstairs and Emily was reading on the couch. But, that was twenty minutes ago and Mike hadn't come back yet. He should've been back by now. The brunette decided to investigate and had found a ladder leading up to the attic.</p><p>Curiosity got the better of her and Emily made her way up the ladder. The attic was surprisingly tidy, the one in her house was always messy and it was difficult to find something. There again there wasn't a lot of stuff around her. Just a few boxes. She found Mike on the other side of the room. He was sitting down and there was a carboard box in front of him. She couldn't see much, although she could see some clothes on the floor. Emily went in for a closer look.</p><p>Mike had a surprising large collection of teddies bears. Emily was tempted to snag one of them but she decided against it. The redhead had allowed her to stay in his home, it would've been disrespectful to take something of his without asking for it first. There was another, more small box next to the carboard box. The clothes she saw were a black tailcoat jacket, a red winged collar shirt and trousers and a brown belt. There was also a collection of photographs with various people on them.</p><p>"What's that?" She asked.</p><p>"Jew a few memories." Mike replied.</p><p>Strange, he wasn't startled by her. He hated surprises - unless they were ones where he had some sort of inkling of what they might be. (So, basically, every time Rachel visited.) Maybe he just got so used to having Emily in the house that he wasn't surprised by her anymore. That, or he was just so caught up by the memories, that he hadn't fully noticed her yet.</p><p>He hoped he wasn't being rude towards her.</p><p>He picked up one of the photographs. The one was of a women with long red hair and blue eyes. Though the recollection was very faint, Mike knew exactly who she was. Her name was Samantha Schmidt. She was no longer amongst the living, having being killed a year before the children went missing (another investigation that had never been cleared up.)</p><p>"She's pretty." Emily said. "She looks like you"</p><p>Mike smiled. "That's my Mother." He turned to her and ruffled his hair slightly. "You didn't think I got this from someone else, did you?"</p><p>"Maybe." Emily replied.</p><p>"Hey, don't worry about it. I didn't tell you about my family anyway so there's no need to get worried about it." Mike assured her.</p><p>
  <em>Actual members of my family. Not him.</em>
</p><p>He searches through the photos and pulls out a few of them. One of them was a photo of two men, both of which Mike recognised straight away. One of them was Scott. The other was a brunette with black eyes and freckles. That was Uncle Fran. They were both wearing tuxedos. It had been Scott's wedding day and he had asked Fran to be his best man.</p><p>"So, this is my Uncle Fran. He's on vacation at the moment with his daughter, Rachel, and her Mother, Aisha. And, this is Scott. He's my Godfather. We'll meet him tomorrow." Mike said.</p><p>"Tomorrow?" Emily frowned. "Why? Where are we going?"</p><p>"To Freddy's, of course." Mike told her. "You'll get to see the place during the day, maybe interact with our animal friends if they're not too busy, and we could arrange a playdate with Alison? If you want to, of course."</p><p>Emily squealed as she started to jump up and down. It was the best news ever! She really wanted to see Foxy again, and Chica, and Bonnie, and Freddy. She really wanted to meet Alison too. She needed to thank her for allowing her to have some of her clothes. She wanted to get to know her better and maybe, just maybe, become friends with her. It would nice to have an actual friend. Kyle had told her that Alison wanted to be friends with her So maybe after they spent some time together, shared interests and did some activities together, then maybe they can become friends after all.</p><p>"Aw. Thank you, Mikey. Your the best!" Emily thanked as she hugged him, not really noticing that she used that <em>nickname</em> for him.</p><p>Mike didn't seem to notice either.</p><p>"Hey now. No need to get overexcited. Save that for tomorrow." Mike said.</p><p>Emily just grinned sheepishly at him before sitting down next to him. Mike carried on going through the photos again, telling her that whilst he had collection of photos of his family, he also had a collection of photographs of his friends too. He told her about his friends, about Javier's family. (expect for Carlos, of course. That was for him to decided whether or not he wanted to tell her about him.) He didn't tell her everything, there was just some stuff that was far too personal to bring up, but he was able to give her a general idea of what his friends were like.</p><p>When they were finished Mike neatly placed the photos back into the cash box before closing the box and using a key to lock it. He placed that box into the carboard box. Then they decided to move onto the teddy bears.</p><p>"So, why do you have all of these teddy bears?" Emily asked.</p><p>"Most of them were... belated birthday presents." Mike replied.</p><p>
  <em>"One for each of the birthday's we've missed."</em>
</p><p>Mike shook his head. No! That was a long time ago. <em>He can't get to you now.</em></p><p>"Most of them?"</p><p>"Yeah. Its sort of hard to explain but, when I was younger, I think I had some sort of teddy bear collection. I'm not really sure, I never asked about it. There were some more recent ones as well." Mike said. "I don't know why I still keep them. I've been meaning to give them away but I just haven't got round to it yet."</p><p>That's when he got an idea.</p><p>"Would you like one?" He asked her.</p><p>Emily's eyes lit up. "I can have one?"</p><p>"Of course you can. I know it wouldn't replaced the one you're currently missing but you're welcome to take on if you like. Like I said, I was only gonna give them away anyway and I'm guessing that you don't have any toys of a cuddly variety."</p><p>Emily shook her head. "No. Just the one teddy bear."</p><p>She was running her hands through the bears fur. This one was of a light brown colour and there was yellow bow tied around it neck. It was so soft, much better then the one she had at home. <em>Home. </em>She hadn't thought about it since last night. She wasn't home sick by any means and she loved spending time with Mike and Javier. But, she couldn't help but think about her parents. Surely, they were angry with her. She ran away from home. She disobeyed them when she was promised she would be on her best behaviour and told Mike and Javier everything that had happened to her.</p><p>That's when Emily realised that she didn't want to go home. She wanted to stay with Mike and Javier.</p><p>"I want to stay with you and Javi." Emily said suddenly.</p><p>He turned to her. "Y-You want to?" Emily nodded. "Why?"</p><p>"You've been so nice to me, and Javi too. I don't want to go back home. My parents treat me horribly, and this is the happiest I have been in a while." Emily replied. "Can't I just stay here with you two? Can you be... My Dad?"</p><p>"It doesn't work like that, Emily. There's regulations we have to go through first, and we haven't dealt with your parents yet." Mike told her. "Besides, your Grandparents might want to meet you, and they might end up gaining custody of you."</p><p>"But, would you?" Emily pressed.</p><p>Mike bit his lip. He couldn't answer her, he couldn't give her false hope like he had been given before. Yet, part of him wanted to adopt her. The more he kept hearing about how Emily was treated, the more he wanted to take her in and give her the life she missed out on. However, the other half of him was reluctant to do so. Not because he didn't want to but he was afraid to do so. He had no experience in raising a child. He had babysat before but there was no predominant figure in his life to guide him.</p><p>(Vincent definitely did not count!)</p><p>And, that wasn't the only thing either. If he did decided to adopt her when this was all over, what would happen if Vincent found his and Javier house? If was only by pure luck that he hadn't found them already - Somehow, no matter where he hides, Vincent always found him. But, what would happen if Vincent found them and Emily was there as well? He... He wouldn't hurt her, would he? Mike wasn't sure. He didn't think he would. If he knew that she was Mike's daughter then there was no doubt in Mike's mind that he would dote on her completely.</p><p>If... If Emily was taken from him then... would he... would he... trade places with her?</p><p>"Its... okay. You don't have to tell me anything."</p><p>"Huh. No, Emily. Its not you... Its just..." Mike said. "You are a sweet kid, Emily, and I wouldn't mind adopting you when this is all over. But, I'm afraid to do so"</p><p>Emily watched him careful as his hand lingered on one of the teddy bears. This one had a purple bow tied around its neck.</p><p>"When we went through the photos I told you about my Mother, my Uncle, my Godfather and my friends. But, I didn't tell you about my - " He hesitates for just a moment. He know what's he's going to say. Its on the tip of his tongue yet he can't force himself to say the word. It just feels wrong to call him by that word. Yet, he knew that he had to be strong. He had to tell Emily what had happened to him. "I didn't tell you about my Dad."</p><p>Well, now that she thought about it, Mike didn't bring it up. There was no photos of the man.</p><p>"He... He's a horrible person, yet I can't bring myself to hate him. There's a lot I can tell you about the things he's has done but its not appropriate for someone like you. He has, however, hurt people. Myself included." Mike went on to say. He wrapped his arms around his body. "He kidnapped me a few months ago, he knocked me out with a sleeping gas and brought me to somewhere where neither of my friends or Javier would find me. I remember waking up in a bedroom. This bedroom... was a boys room. The doors weren't locked so I had almost entire access to the building he put me in. "</p><p>"So, its not all bad, is it?" Emily said</p><p><em>Oh, bless her heart.</em> "No. But, it gets worse. The building was a part of carnival and it was more of a mansion. A haunted mansion, if you will. Anyway in the different room there was some sort of puzzles or riddles that needed to be solved. Stupidly, I decided to do those puzzles and riddles thinking that, if I could complete them, then maybe I could find a way out whilst I was working on them. But, in the end, nothing happened. He gave me false hope. Then he told me the real reason as to why the mansion was built in the first place." Mike told her. "He did it all for me. He did all of that just to make me stay with him, telling me that we could have this every single day and that I would never have to return to the cold reality beyond the mansion's doors."</p><p>"I had learnt from Javier that there were cameras in each of the different rooms... including the one I was using at that moment in time. He was watching me sleep." Mike revealed. "One night I was having trouble sleeping, and I noticed the door opening slightly. I heard movement but I decided to just pretend to go back to sleep. The bed lower behind me and I felt arms wrapped around me. It was him. I think he just wanted to hold me, to cuddle with me. I'd never felt so trapped before. He's obsessed with me, Emily. And, if he finds me again, I know he'll kidnap me again and make it harder for Javier to find me. And, that's why I'm afraid to adopt you. Because if finds me then I'm afraid of what he's going to do to you. It might be... much worse then what he did to me."</p><p>They were hugging each other now. Emily was telling him that she was sorry that he had to go through all of that. Mike smiled slightly, telling her that she didn't have to apologise for something she didn't know about. He shouldn't have told her everything but he needed to give her a reason as to why he was afraid of adopting her. And yet, the part of him that wanted to adopt her and risk it all still lingered in his mind. He would never put a child in danger, and he would do everything in his power to protect her.</p><p>
  <em>But, how can he protect Emily from the one who hurt him the most?</em>
</p>
<hr/><p>Javier was outside the Hendrix company. He had to admit it was a fairly nice building. It was more to do with a showcase room instead of a building where they actually made ceramics but it was where he was meeting Mr Hendrix. His Madre told him that there was person waiting for him on the ground floor. He was to look for a women named Cindy Fletcher.</p><p>Miguel had advised him to dress smartly for the occasion... And had practically helped him pick out clothes because Javier didn't have a lot of them. He was wearing a dark red, buttoned up shirt with long sleeves and a winged collar, dark grey trousers with a black belt and black shoes. The Brunette smiled. He would've to do something nice for Miguel in return. Ideas were already rushing through his head. He couldn't wait to spoil him rotten. For now though he kept those ideas at the back of head. There was work to be done.</p><p>He made his way into the building. There was a bunch of people dotted around the place, all of them where viewing the displays. There was a women standing one of the displays. She had short blonde, wavy hair and brown eyes. She was wearing the company's work uniform, and in her hands was a black tablet. There was name tag on her uniform. He could see the name 'Cindy' on it. That must be who he's looking for. Javier walked over to her.</p><p>"Can I help you, sir?" The women asked, looking up from her tablet.</p><p>"My name is Javier Jones. I have an appointment with Mr Hendrix." The brunette told her.</p><p>"Ah. So, your the person I've been waiting for. My name is Cindy Fletcher. I'm Mr Hendrix's assistant." Cindy replied. "Please. Follow me, Mr Jones. I'll take you up to Mr Hendrix's office. His board meeting has just ended."</p><p>Javier nodded. "Thank you, Cindy. You've haven't been waiting for me too long, have you?"</p><p>"I haven't, Mr Jones Your right on time." Cindy said.</p><p>He followed her to the other side of the room and through the door that was marked 'Employees only'. They went up the stairs and onto the second floor. Mr Hendrix's office was the third door down. When they were outside of the door, Cindy knocked on it and waited for Mr Hendrix's response.</p><p>"Who is it?"</p><p>"Its Cindy Fletcher, sir. Mr Jones is here to see you." Cindy told him.</p><p>"Ah, yes. Send him in then."</p><p>She gestured to the door in front of them, allowing him to head on inside and muttered "Good luck" Javier thanked her, knowing full well that he was going to need all of the luck he needed if he was going to get information the information out of Mr Hendrix. The brunette opened the door. The board room was fairly nice as well, with blue carpet and white walls. There were a few windows on the right side of the room. In the middle of the room was large, rectangular table with a few swivel chairs around it - they were very nice ones too.</p><p>On the left side of the wall was a projection screen, and Mr Hendrix was sitting in a black leather chair closet to it. Mr Hendrix was an late middle age man with brown hair. but there were a few grey streaks in it, and black eyes. There was a pair of reading glasses on his face. He was wearing a black business suit. Javier walked over to him.</p><p>"You must be Sierra's Son. Javier, right?." Mr Hendrix noted. Javier nodded, and shook his hand when Mr Hendrix reached out. "Edward Hendrix. How is your Mother doing? I heard about what happened to Carlos. You have my condolences. What an awful way to die."</p><p>"Thank you. She's doing better, but I think we're all just trying to move on." Javier said, whilst trying to remain calm. This was the last thing he wanted to hear today. But, for Emily it was worth it.</p><p>Edward gestured to one of the spare seats in front of him. Javier chose to sit down on the chair on Edward's right.</p><p>"So, what can I do you for, Mr Jones?" Edward inquired.</p><p>"I wanted to know more about your daughter, Sarah Hendrix." Javier told him.</p><p>"My daughter." Edward looked at him suspiciously. "Why?"</p><p>"There was an incident last month in her house. She had a vase in her possession with your company's logo on it. What I want to know is that why does she have that vase if she doesn't have contact with you or your wife." Javier explained.</p><p>"Maybe she brought it." Edward suggested. "We do work with pottery too, Mr Jones."</p><p><em>"This isn't going anywhere."</em> Javier thought. <em>"I need to tell him the truth. Maybe that way he would be more willing to talk about his Daughter. If he realised what Sarah was doing to her Daughter then maybe that would cox him into talking about his Daughter's past."</em></p><p>"Mr Hendrix, I had learnt from Sarah's daughter that she the vase belonged to Sarah's Grandmother. The vase had been damaged last month, yet the incident was not accidental. Sarah's daughter had been shoved into the table it was standing on by her husband. She also told me that the money was wasted on her, I'm guessing that Sarah has access to large amount of money." Javier revealed. "She treats her horrible, Mr Hendrix. The worse thing is Sarah slapped her her daughter, and yelled at for doing nothing wrong. She's been treated horribly by her Father as well."</p><p>"I.. I have a Granddaughter..." Edward muttered. "I never knew..."</p><p>Javier nodded. "Her name is Emily. Please, Mr Hendrix, its vital that me and my partner find out more about Emily's Mother. I believe that this incident can help us. We want to remove her from that toxic environment. They are abusing her, Senor, and she ran away from home a few days ago."</p><p>The brunette watched as Mr Hendrix leaned back in his chair, his left index finger was tapping the table whilst his right hand was resting on his chin. He was contemplating something. Perhaps it was was knowledge that he had a Granddaughter - one that he definitely did not know about, poor fellow. Or, maybe it was the information he needed about Sarah's past. He seemed so... reluctant to talk about. It made Javier wonder what exactly did Sarah do to her Father. </p><p>"Alright, Mr Jones. I'll tell you what I know." Edward sighed. "I had commissioned a set of vases for my wife's birthday. All of them were worth a lot of money, except for one because it had been damaged in the moving process. I hide that one away and gave the rest to my wife. Sarah had been in the room at that moment. She was angry with me. She said that she had never received any expensive gifts from gifts. Don't get me wrong, Mr Jones. I gave her gifts, birthday presents and whatnot, but I didn't want to completely dote on her. I didn't want to buy her affection."</p><p>"That's understandable, Mr Hendrix." Javier replied. "But, what happened next? Apparently, there was some sort of argument."</p><p>"That's right. Sarah had wanted to be more involved with the company. She always had an eye for business. She once told me that she wanted to take over the business once I retired, I probably would've allowed her if she just waited. I didn't want her to rush into things. Yet, Sarah refused to stop talking about it and she started to take matters into her own hands. She started to making investments in the stock market. I don't know how she got the money... Until I found out what she did." Edward explained. "Somehow Sarah managed to gain access to companies' account. I had no idea about the money going missing until Mrs Fletcher brought it to my attention. It was a hefty amount of money, Mr Jones."</p><p>"How did you react to the news?" Javier questioned.</p><p>"I was angry, but I also felt betrayed by what Sarah did. If she had just talked to me about it first I would've considered the idea. But, she lied to the accountant, having told him that I wanted to make those investments in the first place. When I confronted her about it she tried shift the blame on me, saying that she only acted because I won't allow her to be more involved with the company. I told her that it wasn't the right time to give her more control of the company and that she betrayed my trust by going behind my back. But, Sarah wasn't having it. She has always been so stubborn." Edward told him. "That's when she retaliated with the vase."</p><p>"It was my wife's birthday. Me and my wife, Colette, were celebrating at home. Sarah told us that she would visit later. I had asked her where she was going but she didn't tell me anything. Later on I found out that my office had been broken into and the vase had been stolen. Whoever did it had been careful in the process. The security footage had been deleted, they were wearing gloves." Edward revealed. "...Eventually, I found the vase in Sarah's room. It wasn't hard to put two and two together."</p><p>"What did you do after woods?." Javier inquired. "Clearly, you didn't go to the police about this because Sarah still had the vase."</p><p>"No, I didn't. I couldn't do it, Mr Jones. Despite everything she was still my daughter. I had hoped Sarah would've apologise for what she did, and eventually pay back everything she stole from me, but... I was wrong. Sarah didn't regret anything. She told me that I should have put in a secure place and should of had better security. I just couldn't take it anymore and I told her to leave the house." Edward replied "After that she went missing. We didn't tell anyone because we had no idea where she went. We tried her phone but she had the number changed. To make matters worse Colette told me that everything in Sarah's room had been removed."</p><p>So, that's how the vase ended up in Sarah's possession. It didn't belong to Sarah's Grandmother. It had actually belonged to Emily's Grandfather, until he was going to hand them over to his wife. She had stolen it from her own Father. She probably didn't get rid of the evidence because she couldn't sell it after woods due to the cracks on the vase. So it was beneficial to her that the vase ended up shattering when Emily was shoved in the table. So, why did she decided to keep it for so many years? She could of easily hid it in her house but she decided to display it. Maybe, seeing as she couldn't get rid of the vase, she just decided to keep it and put flowers in it.</p><p>And, since she had some shares in the stock market, maybe that how she got all that money. Maybe she and Eric decided to keep it all for themselves and only spent money on Emily because they had to.</p><p>"Javier, what's going to happen to my Granddaughter? Edward asked. "You said she was being abused, right?"</p><p>"Si. I think the next step is to remove her from her parents entirely and have them arrested." Javier replied. "She might end up in the care system but... I think she wants to stay with me and my Boyfriend."</p><p>"Are you sure about that?" Edward questioned.</p><p>"I think so. She hadn't been very subtle about it but, she's a lot more happier then what she has been. I rather have her live with us then go into the care system." Javier said. "There's something about that girl that just makes everything better. She brings so much joy to us, especially Miguel and he's been hurt for so long.</p><p>"Children will do that. If you can make your child happy then you will receive happiness as well." Edward replied. He paused for just a moment. Again, he was considering something and when he made up his mind his mind he nodded his head. Content on whatever decision he made. "Javier, if you and your partner managed to adopt her, then would me and my wife be able to see her? I wouldn't mind getting to know my Granddaughter a bit better. And I for don't think its fair that me and Colette haven't been able to see our Granddaughter."</p><p>Javier opened his mouth but then he closed it again. There was no doubt in his mind that he would give Mr Hendrix the opportunity to see his Granddaughter. But, he couldn't predict the future. He couldn't predict what might happen next. And, the biggest factor he had to consider was Miguel. The more he kept thinking about it, the more Javier wanted to adopt her when this was all over.</p><p>But, what about Miguel? Would he want to adopt her?</p><p>"I can't promise anything, Mr Hendrix. I would allow you to see your Granddaughter. But, it just depends on what Miguel wants to do."</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Inner turmoil part one</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Javier came back from the Hendrix's company he found Miguel and Emily painting in the living room. Miguel was working on an ongoing painting whilst Emily was playing around with the colours. There was newspaper underneath the canvas and the piece of paper, and both acrylic paint and the regular kids paint were present on the table. He couldn't help but smile at the sight. He hadn't been lying when he told Mr Hendrix what an absolute joy Emily had been to them.</p><p>He decided to leave them to it and head into the kitchen. Dinner needed to be made so he decided to start preparing that. As he was working his mind drifted back to the conversation he had with Mr Hendrix. As much as it pained him, Edward had offered to give detailed summary of the events that lead to the theft of the vase. But, he also needed to time to gather more testimony from his wife and from a few members of his company. That was fine, the more they had on Sarah the better. Apparently, on the day of the theft, there had been a few witnesses but they had all been sworn to secretly by Mr Hendrix and Mrs Fletcher.</p><p>…Which is probably why nobody heard about it outside of the Hendrix's company.</p><p>It made sense though. If anybody found out about what Sarah has done then Mr Hendrix would be ruined - one way or another. If anybody had found out how easy it had been to rob from Mr Hendrix then surely it would be a gateway for future robberies, even though Edward had told him that he had made major changes to his security system. If anybody had found out just how easily Mr Hendrix had been manipulated by his Daughter, and how she stole from her own Father, then they would pity the man. They would also wonder just how easily manipulated the man was and might end up using that for their advantage.</p><p>He saw Miguel enter the room. In his hands was a pot of dirty water with a paint brush in it.</p><p>"Oh. Hello, Javi." Mike said. "When did you get back?"</p><p>"About five minutes ago." Javier replied. "I didn't want to disturb you or Emily so I decided to make a start on dinner. You up for steak tonight?"</p><p>"Sounds good." Mike agreed. "Give me a few minutes and I'll help you."</p><p>The brunette waited until Mike had his back towards him, waited until the pot of water was placed on the work surface. Javier walked up, wrapped his arms around the redhead's waist and started to leave kisses on his neck and his shoulder.</p><p>"Javi." Mike laughed.</p><p>"Mi querido." Javier cooed. "Have I ever told you I love you?"</p><p>"Hmm. A few times." Mike mused. "What's brought all of this on?"</p><p>"I just want to do something nice for you." Javier replied. "How about you skip work tonight and stay with me instead."</p><p>"I'd love to but you know I can't do that, love." Mike said. "Scott was bit miffed when I told him Jeremy wasn't showing up at work. I can only imagine how he would react if he found out I was skipping work."</p><p>"So? Miguel, you practically restored that place when nobody else could. If anything you practically own half of Freddy's You put more into that place then anybody else has. A part from Scott, your literally the most hardest worker at Freddy's." Javier pointed out. "I'm sure Scott won't mind if you ask him. You deserve to have some time off."</p><p>He knew Javier had a point. If anybody deserved time off then it was him. He already gave so much to Freddy's, partly because of his job and partly because of his restoration project. But, if he left Jeremy on his own, then there was no doubt in Mike mind that the place will be left in disarray. It would be chaos. Jeremy could turn his back on the animatronics for one moment and, by the time he check in on the animatronics, Bonnie and Foxy would've already messed the place with there pranks.</p><p>It was temping, partly because Mike had actually wanted to see Jeremy's reaction to the mayhem that Bonnie and Foxy got up to, but you really needed more then two eye on the place when dealing with those two. Then Chica would be causing a mess in the kitchen. Mike knew she was just trying to help. The ghost child that had been trapped inside of Chica's body - Chloe - loved to bake with her Mother when she was alive. That's why Chica kept going into the kitchen. She missed baking., that's why Scott had allowed her more access to the kitchen - on the condition that it was done at night time.</p><p>As far as Mike knew Goldie was still looking for the Toys, so that him and Freddy observing the place.</p><p>He needed to put something in place so that Foxy and Bonne could play without causing a mess.</p><p>But, that can wait until later. Right now he was in Javier's arms.</p><p>"Well, seeing as I have a bit of time before I need to leave for work, you can do something nice for me then." Mike said. "Is that alright with you?"</p><p>"Absolutely." Javier replied. He already had an idea in mind anyway. He left one last kiss on Mike's shoulder before removing his arms. "Come on then. Lets get dinner sorted out."</p><p>Javier went back to tending to the steaks whilst Mike prepared some vegetables and potatoes. They didn't cook together like this, it was more of Javier taking charge in the kitchen whilst Mike 'rested' in the living room - not that he needed it. But, it was nice to do something nice together rather then allowing one person to do all of the work.</p><p>Besides, it gave Mike time to think about everything that happened today. He hadn't expected to give Emily a full blown confession, but Emily wanted to stay with them. She wanted them to adopt her. She wanted him to become her Dad.</p><p>… Now that he thought about it, did he actually want to become a Dad. Mike had never considered the possibility of having children one. If he wasn't with Javier, and if he found somebody nice to settle down with, then would he actually want to have kids some day? He didn't know what he wanted. He sort of felt like a Dad with Emily around, he was her temporally guardian until it was time to deal with Mr and Mrs Porter.</p><p>…Until it was time for Emily to leave them.</p><p>Because sooner or later Emily would've to leave them. Once the news comes out of Sarah and Eric mistreating there Daughter, Emily would be placed in temporary care whilst the court proceeding take place - that's if he and Javier don't get the opportunity first. There again, seeing as he was the one he found Emily sleeping in the alleyway, then Mike would be called into court to give his testimony. He was already helping Emily write down everything she told them. It was just to make everything look more formal and accurate - spelling wise, that is.</p><p>"I had a conversation with Emily earlier. I told her about my Dad." Mike told him.</p><p>"Oh." Javier said.</p><p>He didn't know what else to say. He was generally surprised that Miguel had actually told her, even more surprised that he called Vincent Dad. It was... the first he had actually heard him call Vincent Dad. Miguel had told him that it never felt right to call him that. Even before they met he didn't exactly call him Dad either. He just needed time to adjust, to think, to accept that the fact that he actually had a living relative.</p><p>…Yeah. Funny how all of that ended, isn't it?</p><p>"How did she take it?" The brunette inquired.</p><p>"She was quite surprised by what she heard, she was even hugging me when I finished talking. It just... sort of came out when I told her why I was afraid of adopting her." Mike replied. "She even asked me if I could become her new Dad. And, seeing as we were talking about you as well, I think she wants both of us to adopt her."</p><p>"She said that?" Javier questioned.</p><p>"Yeah. I think she finally realising just how bad they treated her. She wants to stay with us but that's not how the system works." Mike replied. "And then we have Emily's Grandparents to considered. Seeing as they are her only relative she might end up staying with them."</p><p>"Oh, you have to worry about that." Javier replied. "Mr Hendrix was more then happy with us adopting Emily, along as he and his wife are able to see her from time to time. They never knew they had a Grandchild."</p><p>"Because Sarah severed contact with her parents." Mike guessed. "They would asked her questions on where she had been all this time and why she didn't contact them sooner."</p><p>Javier nodded. "That, and they would've liked to know what she did with the money."</p><p>"Money? What money?" Mike questioned.</p><p>"Before she disappeared Sarah had stolen some money from her Father and had invested into the stock market. He didn't give me the full details but it was a hefty sum of money. He did confront her about it but she just ended up blaming him for it. She told him that she had done nothing wrong and that she only did what she did because he wouldn't give her more involvement with the company." Javier explained. "Then Sarah ends up stealing the vase on her Mother's birthday. The vase actually belonged to Mr Hendrix, not Sarah's Grandmother as she proclaimed. The vase had been damaged in the moving process so Mr Hendrix kept that one and gave the rest to his wife."</p><p>"So that explains how the vase ended up in Sarah's possession, and why there were cracks in the first place." Mike said. "And, I'm guessing she didn't sell it because the value had been lost. But, that doesn't really explain why she didn't get rid of it sooner. Surely, you would've get rid of the evidence that was linking you towards a crime."</p><p>"Mr Hendrix didn't want to press charges, he only decided to change his mind today because I told him that Emily was getting abused. He had hoped Sarah would pay him back for the money she had stolen, and apologise for what she had done, but Sarah didn't regret anything." Javier clarified. "But, your right, Miguel. That doesn't really explain why she kept it instead of getting rid of it."</p><p>"Because she was always bragging about it."</p><p>Emily was standing by the doorway. In her hands was a plastic cup with dirty water and a paint brush in it which Mike took away from her.</p><p>"She was always showing it off to the different guys she would bring into the house. They would claim that she was bad girl and she always had this... wolfish grin on her face." Emily told them.</p><p><em>Different guys? </em>Mike didn't want to know, but... "Emily, just how many people was your Mother seeing?"</p><p>"Hmm. I'm not sure. Five or six, maybe? She would always do it on the weekends, when Dad was out of the house. She would bring a different guy home, sometimes she would bring two guys and they didn't seem to mind sharing the same person. But, it was the same group of guys." Emily replied. "And, they were always making these strange noises. It sounded like someone was in pain and that they wanted more."</p><p>Mike exchanged a look with Javier, horrified by what he had heard. It could mean anything but, if Sarah was cheating on her husband, then that meant she was having sex with these men. That also meant that there was a possibility of Emily hearing all of that. No child should hear that. They wouldn't understand what was going on and they could easily misinterpret what was going on.</p><p>"Wait, your Mother was leaving you in the house unsupervised?" Javier questioned. "This is the first time you've mentioned this, Emily."</p><p>"Me too." Mike agreed.</p><p>Emily nodded. "She told me I was a big girl and that I could handle being on my own for a bit. It's no big deal. I was hiding in the attic anyway and there was a latch on the door so I could lock it if somebody came into the house."</p><p>"That's not the point, Emily. Anybody could of walked into the house and do something to you or the house. A girl your age could easily be taken advantage of." Mike replied. "Did your parents not talk to you about stranger danger?"</p><p>"No. They never did." Emily muttered. "The only thing Mom told me was to never talk to strangers. She didn't explain to me why."</p><p>The brunette lowered her eyes. No. They never talked to her about things like this and, judging by the concern in Mike's voice, she knew it was an important lesson that she needed to learn. It made her wonder why her parents never bother to teach her these lessons in the first place. Clearly, they were important otherwise Mike wouldn't have emphasised it to her.</p><p>She felt arms wrapped away her and she was being brought in for a hug.</p><p>"Hey. Its okay, Emily. Your not the one in trouble. You didn't know. She probably meant something else instead of what it actually means." The redhead comforted. He removed his arms from her and held her hands "From now on your safety and wellbeing comes first. We'll be helping you from now on."</p><p>Emily smiled. "Your already helping me so much. You have given me a better home, and I have learnt more from you two then I have at school. I really hope can stay with you two."</p><p>"We'll see, Emily. We'll see" Mike said. "Now then its time for to wash up. You can't be eating with messy hands now, can you?"</p><p>Emily giggled as she left the room and made her way upstairs. Mike couldn't help but smile. That girl knew how to make the house more lively. He was just glad that he was able to cheer her up, she clearly needed it after what she had just heard. He couldn't believe that her parents had never taught her about stranger danger, worse then that they were leaving her in the house unsupervised.</p><p>"It just keeps getting worse and worse, doesn't it?" Mike commented.</p><p>"Si. If Sarah is like this then I hate to see what her husband is like." Javier agreed. "What did you mean when you said 'She probably meant something else instead of what it actually means?'"</p><p>"Sarah probably told her to not tell people what was happening to her, like her teachers or the another adult for example." Mike clarified. "Both Sarah and her Husband were treating their Daughter terribly. She was bribing her Daughter to keep her silent, and she blame her Daughter for breaking the vase when technically it wasn't her fault. Its not normal behaviour."</p><p>"That makes sense" Javier agreed. "If Emily told another adult what was happening to her then they would've to make inquires with the Porters, and neither one of them would want that. Sarah probably put some sort of warning in place if Emily ended up talking to somebody."</p><p>"Wouldn't surprise me if she did." Mike remarked. "We should finish making dinner."</p><p>"You can go and help Emily if you want." Javier said. "I can handle the rest."</p><p>"Are you sure?" Mike questioned.</p><p>"I'm Positive, mi amour." Javier replied.</p><p>The redhead thought about it before making his decision. He planted a kiss on Javier's cheek before he left the room. Javier smiled as he went back to work. He had a feeling that the next few days were going to be interesting, though part of him was actually anxious to see what the final outcome was going to be. They had enough evidence to get Emily removed from her parents, and to have Mr and Mrs Porter arrested. But, anything could go wrong in a space of a few hours or days, and neither one of them could predict what might happen next.</p><p>It didn't surprise him that Miguel didn't want to further talk about adopting Emily. He hadn't dismissed the idea, he just needed more time to think about it - Javier was more then happy to allow him that time. From his observation, it sounded like Miguel was unsure with the idea of adopting a child. It was to do with Vincent, he knew that. As long as he was still out there Miguel would never be safe and, if they did end up adopting a child, then they needed to put that child's safety first. Bringing a child was risky, and they could always put safety precautions in place in case Vincent ended up finding them.</p><p>But, would that be enough to prove a stable environment for a kid? There was no way CPS were going to allow them to adopt a child if there was a murderer out there looking for Miguel.</p><p>Then Miguel would end up blaming himself because he couldn't keep Vincent away. Because he was the only one who Vincent wanted. It doesn't matter if Miguel would never see his friends, his family, himself ever again, as long as Vincent got what he wanted then he would never return ever again. It was so frustrating. Why does Miguel have to play peacekeeper with this man. Why can't Vincent just accept the fact that he hurt Miguel and that redhead doesn't want see him again.</p><p>But Miguel wasn't like him. Miguel could easily use what he had learnt and proved a better home for a child, for Emily. Javier was certain that Miguel would make a great Dad. He just needed time to prove it.</p><hr/><p>Jeremy was already waiting outside of the Pizzeria. Mike hadn't arrived yet, so Jeremy decided to do some more research into the horror attraction. Unfortunately, his research wasn't going anyway. Since it as fairly new, there wasn't a lot of information out there. It was mostly just conspiracy theories, advertisements and online posts about the horror attraction. The reaction to the news was split in half, with people looking forward to the horror attraction opening up whilst others were more sceptical about the idea. Jeremy couldn't blame them. The whole idea was just in poor taste and, it seemed to him, that once again Fazbear Entertainment was using something for their own benefit.</p><p>He was surprised to see just how freely the information was out there. Usually, Fazbear Entertainment were a lot more controlling with the information they put out there. It was mainly damage control and empty promises, like when the children went missing on their premises. Then there was the bad press they received when the Pizzeria's were being left in terrible condition. Fazbear Entertainment denied everything, saving that the conditions weren't as bad as people were making it out to be, and that everybody as busy working on other problems - Jeremy doubt that it was true.</p><p>Then there was the animatronics themselves. Because the animatronics were moving around at night, many people had actually believed that the restaurant was haunted. Fazbear Entertainment had went on to say that the animatronics needed to be in free roam mode or the servos would lock up and they wouldn't be able to preform in the morning. But, it was getting more and more harder to believe after witnessing what was going on at night. The animatronics staring at the camera, the strange noises, the hallucinations. Clearly. there was something going on. Unfortunately, nobody believed them.</p><p>A few minutes later Mike's car pulled up to the entrance. To his surprise Mike was smiling. Strange, when was the last time he saw Mike smiling?</p><p>"You look happy." Jeremy noted as Mike stepped out of his car. "Did something good happen at yours and Javier's house?"</p><p>"Not really. I just have an amazing boyfriend!" Mike proclaimed.</p><p>"Oh. Are you sure something didn't happen?" Jeremy inquired.</p><p>"Its was nothing special. Just dinner and a relaxing bath." Mike replied.</p><p><em>Nothing special?</em> Javier practically adored Mike. They were good for each other. Javier comforted Mike when he needed it, Mike soothed Javier whenever the brunette was angry. Mike found out what really happened to Javier's Brother, Javier rescued Mike when Vincent kidnapped him.</p><p>"So, why are you grinning like a Cheshire cat?" Jeremy asked.</p><p>"Well, lets just say I left a very grumpy man at home. He's not happy with me." The redhead told him.</p><p>"Mike, its Javier. I don't think he could ever be upset with you." The brunette pointed out.</p><p>"True, but that's not what I'm talking about. Javi wanted to spend some more time with me and, unfortunately for him, I had to refuse his offer. I made a compromise with him." Mike clarified. "You should of seen his face earlier. It was so adorable."</p><p>So that was it, although Jeremy had a feeling there was more to it then Mike was willing to say. It wasn't out of fear, it was something between the couple and it wasn't Jeremy's place to talk about it. Still though, he couldn't help but be intrigued by it.</p><p>Before he could ask Mike about it he was interrupted by the sound of a phone buzzing. It was coming from Mike's phone. The redhead pulled his phone out of his pocket. It had only taken Mike a few seconds to check his messages and, when he was finished, he was practically giggling like a schoolgirl.</p><p>"Oh, Javi. What am I going to do with you?" Mike commented.</p><p>"What's wrong?" Jeremy asked.</p><p>"See for you yourself." Mike replied as he showed the brunette the message he received.</p><p><em>"Miguel, I'm lonely. Come back to me. I need to hear you voice."</em> Jeremy read. "Is he always like this?"</p><p>"Only when he's behaving like a puppy dog. He's being bit too clingy but I see where he's coming from. He doesn't want to loose anyone, me especially." Mike said. "In fact I think we're a bit too clingy with each other but can you blame us? We've both lost somebody important to us, and we don't want to go through what happened last time again. And, that's not forget about the abuse and the years of abandonment, Jeremy."</p><p>"Doesn't that get too much at times?" Jeremy questioned. "I don't mean to intrude on your relationship, I can see that Javier makes you happy, but spending some time apart might strengthen your relationship, and it will allow you to spend sometime with your friends."</p><p>"Sometimes, but I don't really mind it. Its nice to have someone who is affectionate towards me without them being creepy. Javi isn't controlling, if that's what your wondering. He just worried about me and, again, he doesn't want to loose me. Maybe, when we get some alone time together we'll talk about. We've just been so busy lately what with the Pizzeria and looking after Emily. " Mike replied. He linked his arm with the brunette. "Come on, Jerry. Lets go to work."</p><p>They entered the building together. It was strange, Jeremy didn't think Mike was comfortable enough to do something like this. It was very rare for the redhead to allow people to come close to him, it was even rarer to allow people to hug him or just to make simple contact with him. Perhaps they had established enough trust to allow Mike to do something like this. Jeremy doubt that, it was far too early to make a decision like that. Still though, seeing as he and Mike were rebuilding their friendship, maybe Mike was allowing</p><p>It was when they entered the main party room that Jeremy realised something. Emily. Who exactly was Emily? And, was why Mike and Javier looking after her?</p><p>"Mike, who's Emily?" Jeremy asked.</p><p>"Oh, right. I never told you about that, did I?" Mike said. "Emily is the little girl me and Javi are looking after, at least until we can sort out her parents. They're abusive towards, Jerry and, once we've finalised the details, we will be going to the police."</p><p>"Really? Poor kid. Where are there some many horrible people in the world?" Jeremy replied. "What's going to happen after woods? I'm guessing she'll be sent to a care home or maybe some relatives. These things don't happen over night, do they?"</p><p>Mike froze when Jeremy said that, he had been making way to the security office when the question came to him. What would happen after everything was done? This was probably the second, maybe third time somebody had asked a similar question. And, it hurt every time somebody asked him that question. Because the more he thought about it, the more he started to realise he actually wanted to adopted Emily. But... he knew he couldn't. Not with Vincent out there.</p><p>"I... I don't know, Jerry. I... I mean... I think... Javi wants to adopt her... but... but... I don't... I don't know... what to do." Mike stuttered.</p><p>"Well, what do you want, Mike?" Jeremy asked.</p><p><em>Yes, what exactly did he want? </em>He didn't know what he wanted. He had been given so many choices in so many months - both good and bad. He didn't know what to do with them and he had feeling that, no matter what he choose, he would be upsetting a lot of people just to save the ones he loved. And, despite not knowing her for a long time, Emily was one of those people.</p><p>But, its not like he can go out on whim and decide what he wants now, can he? There were too many what ifs to consider. He and Javier could adopt Emily, but then what happens if Vincent ends up finding them and he sees Emily? What would he do to her? Its not like he could simply hope that Vincent wouldn't hurt her. Because somehow he would use Emily for his own advantage, he would probably use her for bargaining tool. But, would Mike be able to trade places with? He would never put another child in danger but... would he want to go through the kidnapping again?</p><p>No. He couldn't do it. He couldn't live with that man again. But... would he do it for Emily?</p><p>"I... I don't know what I want, Jerry. Not anymore." Mike admitted. "Before any of this happened there had been so many sleepless nights where I wanted someone to save me from that monster. And then Vincent came along and I thought to myself that this was my chance to receive a happy ending. But, then we found out what he did... that happy ending was taken from me. What could I have done, Jerry. Choose Vincent and learn to trust him again or choose you guys and live in misery because, once again, I was alone even though I had Javi and whatever friendship was left with you guys. And, I can't exactly bring Emily into the house, can I? Cause, if Vincent ends up finding me again, I don't know what he would do to her. It just wouldn't be right, would it?"</p><p>No, Jeremy thought. It wouldn't be right, not with that monster still out there. They were in a stalemate. They didn't know what Vincent was planning next. Mike and Javier couldn't adopt Emily, not with Vincent out there. In fact none of them could really do anything now that Jeremy thought about it. Surprisingly, whilst Vincent was the biggest factor in all of this, there was other elements involved with this as well. Jack and Kyle still had matters to tend to - that probably meant Matt was involved as well. Fazbear Entertainment was just as corrupt then ever - that meant he, Scott and Fran and the rest of the employees have to deal with that. And, Mike and Javier had their own problems.</p><p>It just wasn't fair on all of them.</p><p>But... they weren't exactly alone this time, were they?</p><p>"Mike, I don't know how long you known Emily for but if you see this child as your own then you should adopt her before anybody else takes her from you." Jeremy said. Before Mike could protest, Jeremy carried on. "Look at Jack and Kyle. They adopted Oscar and Alison even though Jack has a condition that forces him to carry out somebody else work. They make it work, and they have safety precautions put in place to protect the kids. Besides, you won't be going through this alone. You have Javier and you have the rest of us."</p><p>"Jeremy... What are you saying?" The redhead questioned.</p><p>"That me and the others will protect you, and Emily if needs must, from that monster. I had a meeting with Scott earlier. He wants to us to start learning some self defence so that, if somebody attacks us, then we will be able to fight back. He thinks it will be beneficial to all of us, you especially." The brunette told him. "He's also thinking about having some sort of base of operations. I'm not entirely sure what he wants to use it for but I think he wants to protect Freddy's, or fight back against Fazbear Entertainment. The point is, If we all stick together, then we'll get through this together."</p><p><em>"He's right." </em>Mike thought.<em> "We are in this together because we are the only ones who can deal with this. But, I don't want them to risk their lives just for me."</em></p><p>He just wished he was a lot more useful. That way no one would need to protect him. But, what exactly can he do? He wasn't much of a fighter, art and puzzles were more his thing... Wait, maybe he could be strategist? He preferred working behind the scenes and, even though Vincent didn't exactly tell him what he was planning, he knew how Vincent worked. Maybe he could set up some traps? And, even if he wasn't going to be helping the others with dealing Vincent, he could always help with some other things.</p><p>"Are you planning something, Mike?" Jeremy asked. "You have that look in your eyes."</p><p>"I'm just trying to figure out what I'm good at. I'm want to help you and the guys in any way I can but I'm don't know what to do." Mike told him.</p><p>"Well, you are rather good at puzzles." Jeremy remembered. "Remember when we were sent the puzzle box? You were the only one who managed to solve it."</p><p>"Because the rest of you thought that it was a waste of time and you were bickering about other things. Besides, I seem to recalled that you thought the puzzle box was some sort of bomb." Mike recalled.</p><p>"Yeah, well, better be safe than sorry. We didn't exactly know what it was until you told us." Jeremy replied. "But, there's no need to bring that up again, is there Mike? I mean we've all had that one moment when were embarrassed by something."</p><p>"I guess not. Even though your reaction was quite hilarious." Mike jibbed. "Thanks, Jerry. I really needed this."</p><p>Jeremy nodded. "No problem, Mike. Its what friends do for each other."</p><p>Mike nodded in return, before telling Jeremy he was going to the security room for a little bit. He needed some time to think and Jeremy could handle the animatronics for little bit. He knew what he was doing now. He just needed to expanded on that idea and decided on what to do next. Perhaps, when everything was in order, he could ask Jeremy for some help. Jeremy was the one who had all of the information at the moment, until they found something better that is. But, there was nothing they could do at the moment. Until then the only thing they could do is to prepare for what might happen next.</p><p>Things were going to be different this time. He could feel it.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Inner turmoil part two.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mike was busy working in the security office, ideas and plans were already circulating in his head - each one of them was different then the last, yet there was no guarantee that they would work. The outcomes didn't bother Mike. If anything it was a learning experience and they were only rough ideas anyway. He always carried his messenger bag with him, inside was sketch book and a pencil case. You never know when inspiration comes to you.</p><p>Art started out as therapy for Mike. When Jonathan was abusing him, he practically had no one to talk to - except for Rachel that is, but then she moved out of the house after one too many arguments with her Mother and Jonathan. After that he was alone and, in order to find some sort of comfort and safe way to expression his emotions, he turned to art. It started out as doodles, then he started to do art journals until finally he started to do full masterpieces.</p><p>He had the opportunity to attend an art school...</p><p>Unfortunately, Aisha wouldn't allowed it.</p><p>Looking back on it, he knew Aisha was only concerned for his safety, but it still hurt knowing that, at the time, he didn't know the reason as to why she went out of her way to protect him. Because Vincent was looking for him, though Aisha never told him. He didn't exactly remember the man at the time, which is why he was surprised when he found out the truth. After meeting Vincent his memories came back to him, though nobody knew why he was missing his memories in the first place.</p><p>Aisha refused to tell him anything, she merely told him that a friend - who turned out to be his Uncle Fran - had brought him to her one night and she promised to keep him safe, But, after a while, it was to getting tiresome, and Mike was getting frustrated by all of the secrecy. He should have been angry when everything came out but, in the end, the only thing he felt was pain, disappointment and betrayal. Some good came out of it though. He had found and met Javier. He had met Scott, Matt, Jack and Kyle and was reacquainted with Uncle Fran. He had a helping hand in restoring Freddy's, the idea was his in the first place and had painted the rooms on the ground floor.</p><p>But, was it really fair for him to give up on everything just because one man was looking for him?</p><p>Mike shook his head. There was no point dwelling on it now. He couldn't change what happened. The only thing he could is learn from the past, and to not make the same mistakes as other people have. As much as he hated secrets, he knew he would have to deal with his own insecurities and open up more - which wasn't easy in the first place but there was no need for him to completely reveal everything. As long as people gave him time and allow him to open up bit by bit then maybe, just maybe, he would feel comfortable enough to talk about it.</p><p>He turned his attention back to the open page in his sketch book. He was currently working on a mind map with possibly ideas that needed to be taken care of, preferably the part that lead of to the Toy animatronics. There was only one on his mind at the moment. The Marionette. Seeing as he was the one who bounded the missing children with the animatronics then they needed to deal with him too. There was always a possibility that he could do the same the other spirits, or possibly use another animatronic to do his bidding.</p><p>They still needed to find out his identity.</p><p>"Goldie!" He called out. "Are you there?"</p><p>Goldie immediately appeared in the room. There was something unusual about golden bear. He had the ability to 'teleport' around the building - Though nobody exactly knew why he had this ability. It was probably because of his incorporeal state.</p><p><em>"<strong>You called, Michael?" </strong></em>Goldie said. <strong><em>"Did you need something?"</em></strong></p><p>"I did, Goldie. Thank you for coming." Mike replied. "I was wondering if you knew anything about the Marionette. I have a feeling that we might have to deal with him again, and I would like to know more about him."</p><p><em><strong>"I'd be happy to help you, Michael. But, why me? Jeremy was the one who worked at the old Pizzeria. He's bound to have more information about him."</strong></em> Goldie said.</p><p>"Jeremy only work the night shift, except for the final day the Pizzeria was open where he had to work the dayshift. But, he didn't get any time to actually talk to him. The information he might have is probably from the phone calls Scott gave him. I was hoping to ask about how he managed to put your spirits inside the animatronics." Mike explained.</p><p><strong> <em>"Ah. So you want to know about that day..."</em> </strong> <em> Goldie trailed off.<strong> "To be honest I'm not sure what he is either. He just appeared out of nowhere, he must of heard us crying. He told us his name was Mario but he looked more human than an actual puppet."</strong></em></p><p>"More human?" Mike repeated.</p><p><strong><em>"He became the Marionette after he found the animatronic. I think he was another spirit but he appeared to be older. We're all a bit uneasy around him but then he told us what happened to him." </em></strong>Goldie clarified. "<em><strong>He told us that it was his friend's birthday and that he had been locked out of the Pizzeria. A man had pulled up to the Pizzeria. There was something wrong with his car and he was busy checking it over. Mario had walked over to him, asked him for help and the man decided to help him. He told him to follow him a near by alleyway and... well, you can guess what he did next."</strong></em></p><p>"He killed him. Poor kid." Mike lamented.</p><p>
  <em> <strong>"Yes. Though, what was remarkable about the whole conversation was that he told us that the same person who killed us killed him as well." Goldie went on.</strong> </em>
</p><p>"What? D-do you mean t-tell me..." Mike faulted. The words wouldn't come out of his mouth. This happened before? When exactly did this happened exactly? "He did this before?"</p><p>
  <em> <strong>"That's what he was implying but he could be lying." Goldie replied. "He could of said that to gain our trust. He needed our help, told us that there was only so much he could on his own. But, what exactly could we do? The only thing we could of done was create some paranormal activity. But, apart from that, there was nothing else we could of done."</strong> </em>
</p><p>"Which explains why he put you in those suits..." The redhead commented.</p><p>Mike leaned back in his chair, he was trying to process all of this. Newfound information was coming out coming out left, right and centre - first from Emily, and now from Goldie. He didn't know what to think of anymore. Whoever the Marionette was he was just another victim of Vincent's schemes, but that didn't excuse the fact that he put the missing children inside the animatronic suits and took away their memories.</p><p>Actually, now that he thought about it, why did he do that in the first place? If he needed help finding there murderer then why did he decided to remove their memories? Surely, the kids would've been able to recognise him.</p><p>"One thing that's bothering me. Why did the Marionette decided to remove your memories in the first place?" Mike inquired.</p><p>
  <em> <strong>"Perhaps he didn't want people to find out what he was planning? We couldn't exactly talk to the people around us but there's always spirit mediums." Goldie replied, though he wasn't confident in what he was saying. "When we first met him I didn't trust him, he knew that. He would interact with the other children. He tried to do the same with me but I refused to reveal anything. I was trying to protect my brother and the rest the missing children. Mario told me to relax and that he would be protecting us now. I didn't believe him."</strong> </em>
</p><p>"I can see why. After being deceived and murder you bound to have a hard time trusting people again." Mike said.</p><p><em><strong>"Exactly. We had no reason to trust the spirit. When Mario gave us his offer, Bran, Chloe, Felix and my Brother turned to me for guidance. But, I saw the desire in their eyes and... I foolishly accepted his offer."</strong></em> Goldie replied.<em><strong> "And, when I found out what he was planning, he demanded that I kept quiet about my findings. But, I refused. It meant becoming his obedient little puppet and I refused to become something like that."</strong></em></p><p>"How did he take your response?" Mike inquired.</p><p><em><strong>"He wasn't fazed by what I said. He just... smiled." </strong></em>Goldie answered. <em><strong>"He knew which one of the kids was going into an animatronic but he hadn't decided on what he was going to do with me. Then he found this suit and he trapped me inside of it. Then he removed my memories, and the ones involving me from the other kids. That's why my Brother was surprised the first time he saw me like this."</strong></em></p><p>"I can understand him wanting to remove your memories, no offense Goldie. But, why did he remove the other kids memories? Especially the ones involving there death. They would've been able to recognise their killer, and there would be a lot more night guards alive." The redhead questioned.</p><p>
  <em> <strong>"No taken, Michael. Your right, there would've been a lot more night guards alive if he hadn't decided to take away their memories. They probably didn't recognise him because they hadn't seen him in years." Goldie replied. "And, that's not forget about the actual animatronics themselves. They wouldn't recognise the nights guards as people, only as an endoskeleton without its costume on."</strong> </em>
</p><p>Mike nodded. With everything happening, it was hard to remind some of the more minor details. Of course the animatronics would be a factor in all of this, when were they not involved in matters like these? It didn't help that Fazbear Entertainment was neglectful of their animatronics. If they had listen to the night guards, if they had done their job instead of slacking off, maybe none of this would have happened in the first place.</p><p>But, that was just wishful thinking, wasn't it?</p><p>
  <em> <strong>"Is there anything else you need, Michael?" Goldie asked.</strong> </em>
</p><p>"No. Thank you, Goldie. You've been very helpful." Mike replied.</p><p><em><strong>"No problem, Michael. Now if you excuse me..." </strong></em>And, just like that, Goldie vanished into thin air.</p><p>The redhead shook his head as he grabbed the tablet of the table. He would've ask Goldie where he wonders off to whenever he wasn't needed. There again, since he didn't have any updates regarding the Toy animatronics, maybe he was still looking for them. Mike checked the camera. Surprisingly, everything was calm, although there was some sort of commotions going on in the main party room.</p><p>Chica was standing near the stage. It looked like she was ordering someone to move something because she was moving her right hand rapidly. On stage Freddy, with help from Jeremy, was moving a backdrop of a... castle? It was kind of hard to tell from where he was sitting, he would need to get a closer look. For once Foxy and Bonnie weren't doing much. They were still on one of the tables, Foxy was moving his legs slightly whilst he was talking to Bonnie.</p><p>Mike decided to leave the room and investigate.</p><p>"What's going on here then?" He asked when he entered the main party room.</p><p>"Oh, Mike! We were just um... changing sets for the show stage." Chica said.</p><p>"Oh, really now? Have you been working on some new material for the performances?" Mike inquired.</p><p>"Um... Well..."</p><p>"Oh, for goodness sake, Chica, just tell him what you want to do." Bonnie said. "I'm sure Mike will approve of it either way."</p><p>"Now, Bonnie, there's no reason to be rude." Mike chimed in. He turned back to the chicken. "What do you want, Chica?"</p><p>Chica sighed, or at least it was something that resembled a sigh - it was more of groan. "I was hoping we could have a Princess day. On the day we were killed we were all dress up for Felix's birthday. I - or rather Chloe - was wearing a beautiful dress. I used to have tea parties and play dress up with my friends outside the little group I have now. It would be nice If I could experience that again."</p><p>Foxy lowered his head, his legs were slowing down. "I'm sorry, Chica."</p><p>"Sorry? Why are you apologising, Foxy?" Chica questioned.</p><p>"Its my fault the five of us were killed. If I didn't have my birthday at Freddy's..." Foxy lamented.</p><p>"Foxy, you couldn't have known what would've happened..." Jeremy said comfortingly.</p><p>"Nay, Lad. I couldn't have known. But I was the one who wanted to follow that damn rabbit, I was the one who wanted to see my special gift. If I had just kept quiet..." Foxy rambled.</p><p>Bonnie placed his hand on Foxy's shoulder. "Foxy, you don't need to blame yourself for that. We all wanted to follow him."</p><p>"But, if we just gave him what we wanted..." The fox "Perhaps then he wouldn't have gone after the others. Then Maria and the rest of them..."</p><p>"Foxy, please, don't beat yourself up about this. None of this is your fault. In fact none of you should feel guilty about what happened." Mike interrupted. "You couldn't have known what Vincent was planning, even if it was just simple matter of obtaining blood. If had managed to go through it without any complications - and I don't mean you guys, he could have been found out if somebody was watching the place more carefully - then what would've happened next? Would that even be enough to save my Brother? Would anybody</p><p>"And, if you think about it Fazbear Entertainment are at fault as well. For a company that is dedicated to children's entertainment you think they would be able to stop things like this from happening. I don't know why they decided to keep the old suits. Whilst it doesn't excuse what he has done, Vincent merely used that for his advantage." Jeremy added.</p><p>"Exactly." The redhead agreed. "The point is your not to blame for any of this. You had been manipulated and betrayed by the people who are suppose to protect you. You were tricked and used by the Marionette in order to do his bidding. You had been neglected from some many years. Even now people don't exactly know what happened on the day of the birthday party. You don't deserve any of this."</p><p>Freddy, Bonnie, Chica and Foxy all exchanged looks with each other, wondering if Mike was truly loosing his sanity. Why? Why would he do this? Why would any of them do this? Even after everything they had put them through, even after everything they had seen, they still decided to come back and help them. Any sane person would have left the first opportunity they had - If they can get away without being caught or found out first. Yet, both Mike and Jeremy came back. Why? Why would they do this?</p><p>Why do they care about them?</p><p>"Michael, why do you care about us so much?" Bonnie questioned. "You could of walked away when you had the chance. Yet, even after everything we put you through, you came back and changed this place. You even helped us when nobody else did. Even now you and Jeremy are trying to comfort us. Why, Mike? Why would you do all of this?"</p><p>"I care because I see you guys as my friends. When we were much younger our Mothers would take us to Freddy's - I can't remember which one it was, maybe it was the one where all of the murders happened But, we used to love coming to Freddy's. I'm pretty sure will have our old plushies of Freddy and Bonnie somewhere in our houses. In fact Freddy, you and Chica were my favourites. " Mike told them. "The five of you and the rest of the victims deserve better and I intend to free all of you from your imprisonment, even If I had to hunt down the Marionette myself."</p><p>As soon as he was finished one by one the animatronics walked over to him and hugged him. They never knew Mike had some much affection for them, Jeremy probably did as well but he was just hiding it at the moment. It was nice to know that somebody care about them, even if they were just animatronics at the moment. It made sense though. They had been neglected for so many use. It was as if people stopped caring about them. Weren't they the reason as to why money was being brought into the building They were the performers after all, not the members of staff.</p><p>"Wait a minute. Your going to look for the Marionette?" Jeremy questioned.</p><p>"Its only an idea at the moment. Me and Goldie were talking about it in the security office. Somehow he has some of ability that allows him to trap souls inside the animatronics." Mike replied. "We don't exactly know what he is. Is he another spirt possessing the Marionette or something else entirely? We need to find him. He must be dealt with or reasoned with."</p><p>Jeremy thought about it for a moment. Mike was right. They had to deal with the Marionette, he was just another problem that they had to dealt with. He was capable of tying the kids spirits with the animatronics then who knows what he could do next? He wanted Vincent dead for a reason, perhaps it was for personal vengeance or something else. If that's the case then perhaps there is spirit possessing the Marionette. The questions is: Who is possessing it? The Missing Kids had no idea who it was. The spirit must of gave them a false name then. But, why would he do that?</p><p>Actually, now that he thought about it, he didn't know much about the Toy animatronics either. When he and Mike were investigating the 'New and Improved Freddy's' he didn't have much information to give him about the location and its animatronics - though, to be fair, he had only seen the place during the day once and during his night shift he was too busy keeping the animatronics at bay and winding up the music box. The only information he could give him was from the phone calls.</p><p><em>There was always the </em>archive<em> room.</em></p><p>"Why don't you check the archive room?" Jeremy suggested as he gave him the keys. "I was never around long enough to find out anything else about the Toy animatronics, only from what Scott told me through the phone calls and even then that was limited information. There might be some old newspapers on the Toy animatronics in the archive room. If we are going to be looking for both the Toy animatronics and the Marionette then we will need to find more information on them."</p><p>Mike nodded. It wasn't much but it was a good place to start with at least. "Are you coming with me?"</p><p>Jeremy shook his head. "I'll stay down here and keep on eye on this lot."</p><p>"Alright then. See you later." Mike said.</p><hr/><p>The archive room was on the second floor of the Pizzeria, which was two doors down from the Manager's office. Mike was going through a few newspapers on the table, trying to find a starting point for the information on the Toy animatronics. The first time he entered the room he was completely mesmerized by the room... and, also a bit confused as to why a Pizzeria would have this room in the first place. They kept all sort of things in this room. Newspapers, old documents, files, stuff on the animatronics.</p><p>That was also the first time he had actually met Vincent.</p><p>It was Wednesday afternoon when he first entered the room. He had come in for a quick bit to eat and to check the place out during the day. Mr Johnson, the old Manager, needed some items taken upstairs and he just happened to come across Mike in the process - He didn't seem surprised to see him during the day, nor did he ask why he there in the first place. He just told Mike to take the box upstairs and put it inside the archive room. Mike accepted the errand without any protest - He didn't want to risk upsetting the man when he had already heard about his anger issues.</p><p>Vincent was already in the room. Mike didn't see him when he entered the room, he must have been behind one of the bookcases because he had given him such a fright when he revealed himself. Mike didn't even notice him coming closer until he said something.</p><p>
  <em>"So, you were the one who was humming..."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike gasped. He didn't think anyone was in the room. He turned around, looking for the owner of the voice, when he came face to face with a man. He was... strange looking, with purple hair tied up in a ponytail and light facial hair around his mouth. There was a scar on his left cheek He was wearing a blue collar shirt and trousers, a brown body warmer, a belt and black shoes.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>His eyes... Oh, his eyes. They were emotionless but that was betrayed by the smile on his face - or was it the other way around?. Yet, Mike couldn't turn away from them. There was something... haunting about them. Like he seen a great deal of pain. Perhaps the smile on his face was a mask, to trick people into thinking he was okay when in reality he was not.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Um."</em>
</p><p><em>"Oh. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you." The man said. "</em> <em>It's just... I've heard that song before."</em></p><p>
  <em>"Y-you have?" Mike questioned.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The man nodded. "Yes, although it was a long time since I've heard it last. There was... a women I used to know, although though she used to sing it whenever we would..." The man hesitated for a moment before shaking his head. He seemed... upset about something. "Well, that doesn't matter. Like I said it was a long time ago."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Do you want to talk about it?" Mike inquired.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Huh?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"W-well, its just you looked a little upset. I-I was just..." Mike tried to explain.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh. No, no, that's alright. I'd rather not talk about it. "The man replied.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh." Mike muttered.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He shouldn't have done that. He practically forcing the man to talk about something that was troubling for him. That's kind of ironic considering he couldn't talk about his own problems. He was being Mr nice guy, trying to fix everybody's problems, and help wasn't needed this time.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hey, don't worry about it. I know you meant well kid, and any other time wouldn't mind talking about her. But, its too close to her passing and... I lost somebody else that day. Someone important." The man said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh. I'm sorry." Mike said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Don't be. You didn't know." The man replied. "You know, now that I think about it, I haven't seen you before. Are you the new night guard?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I am." Mike confirmed. "My name's Mike. Mike Schmidt."</em>
</p><p>Mike shook his head as the memory faded. How could he have been so stupid? He should have realised there was something of from the moment he saw him, especially after he saw Vincent's reaction to his name - He had been shocked by that revelation. But, there was nothing suspicious about him at the moment other than him being a little creepy.</p><p>The women he mentioned, that was probably his Mother. It made sense though seeing as she used to sing a lullaby to him and his Brother when they were younger in order to help them sleep. Mike could hardly remember her but he guessed the melody stayed with him and he was remembering certain things at that time.</p><p>Those eyes... he couldn't forget those eyes. How exactly did his eyes become grey? Fran had black eyes, and he had told Mike that Vincent's eyes used to be black as well. Now they were dark grey, emotionless and lifeless. However, whenever Vincent was around him, his eyes would sometimes light up and Mike could see hints of black in them. The colour grey meant a lot of things but the two words that came to Mike the most were depression and grief.</p><p>Alec told him that Vincent wasn't the same after Samantha's death, and Mike's disappearance. He was trying so hard to stay strange around him but there were moments, very little moments when the cracks would show and Alec had actually heard him cry. Then he changed. He only showed kindness to Alec. He only allowed himself around Alec. He was more neutral around others, sometimes he would show unfriendliness to people he didn't like.</p><p>Mike had told him about Vincent's strange behaviour. Alec believed it was a defence mechanism, something that wouldn't allow him to deal with the painful memories. Though he didn't talk about him much, Vincent used to tell him stories about his father: David Schmidt. Vincent never liked his parents. They were... horrible to him, whilst they favoured his Brother. Because Vincent didn't become their prefect son. He was a daydreamer, he loved pranks and he was a visionary. But, his parents didn't approve of it. David would constantly belittle him and tell him to grow up. His Mother was ashamed of him and constantly told him to behave.</p><p>It must of been hard on him. They never supported him. They never showed him any sort of affection. They never approved of anything he did, surely they would of been ashamed if they found out what he did. He wasn't treated like a normal child. He must have been... really lonely.</p><p>Mike blinked. Did he... Did he actually feel sorry for him? He had been treated so badly that it was bound to have negative effects on him. Perhaps, because of the way he acted around him and Alec, it was his way of coping with what happened to him.</p><p>
  <em>Maybe if he received some help...</em>
</p><p>NO! Mike hunched over and gripped the table before him, snapping his eyes shut as he tired to control his breathing. He didn't feel sorry for him. The might of felt sorry for him once but never again. That's what he wants and he will use that for his advantage. Never again. Not after what he did to him, not after what he put him. He couldn't, he wouldn't, go through that again. He couldn't excuse what he did to him, to the missing children, to the people he had hurt.</p><p>
  <em>But... if he could help him...</em>
</p><p><strong> <em>"Oh. Lookie here, Fred. </em> </strong> <strong> <em>We've got a tormented one. Isn't that adorable?"</em> </strong></p><p><em>Huh. </em>Mike looked up. In front of him... or, rather on the wall in front of him, was a shadow of the bunny. The silhouette looked oddly familiar. It kind of looked like Bonnie, only not exactly like the Bonnie he knew downstairs. It must be Toy Bonnie then, Mike guessed. There really wasn't much the redhead could take away from this. There was a row of visible teeth showing and, instead of eyes, there was a pair of white pin pinpricks.</p><p>"What... What are you?" Mike asked.</p><p><strong><em>"How rude! You didn't even ask us for our names!" </em></strong>The shadow responded<strong><em>.</em></strong></p><p>"Then who are you?" Mike asked instead.</p><p>The shadow grinned. <strong><em>"Oh. But, we don't have names, silly." </em></strong>Mike groaned as he rubbed his temples. He felt a headache coming on. Somehow he had a feeling that this wasn't going to go well.<strong><em> "But, I suppose if you must call us something, then you can call me Shadow Bonnie."</em></strong></p><p>
  <strong> <em>"And, you can call me Shadow Freddy."</em> </strong>
</p><p>What? Mike turned to where the second voice came. He frowned as he took in the other shadow. It sort of looked like... Goldie only... purple. It had the same top hat and bow tie as Goldie, but its stomach was a light shade of purple. The jaw was loose, there were several wires coming out of its body, parts of what looked like an endoskeleton was exposed. There was a microphone in its right paw but Mike didn't think it was used for singing. It was missing its left ear and a button on its stomach. And, there were no eyes. Just a pair of white pinpricks.</p><p>"Well, its nice to meet you both. So, w-what do you want?" Mike said.</p><p><strong><em>"What a silly question. why ask for something when you have already given it to us." </em></strong>Shadow Bonnie replied<strong><em>.</em></strong></p><p>"I-I don't understand. Why exactly have I given to you?" Mike questioned.</p><p>Shadow Freddy giggled. For somebody who looked like Goldie it sounded nothing like him. The laughter more deeper than Goldie's laugh.<em><strong> "Look at him, Brother. Its so cute. Poor thing doesn't know what he has done."</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"Perhaps we should make things more simpler for him then." </strong></em>Shadow Bonnie suggested.<em><strong> "After all we clearly know him better than he knows himself. We know all about the suffering and the pain he's been through. All of the punches, and the blood, and the cuts, and the shouting, and the arguments. Oh, its so delightful!"</strong></em></p><p>No. No, No. T-this... this wasn't happening!</p><p><em><strong>"Oh, but he had an </strong></em><strong><em>opportunity to escape all of that, didn't he?" </em></strong>Shadow Freddy said.<strong><em> "What was he name again? Oh, that's right. Vincent Schmidt. How is dear old Daddy these day, little Mikey?"</em></strong></p><p>"I... I d- don't know..." Mike stammered.</p><p><strong><em>"Aw. That's shame that, isn't it. He misses you so dearly. Yet, you can't be bothered to see him, let alone talk to him. All he wants to do is make you happy." </em></strong>Shadow Bonnie said. <strong><em>"You know he would kill for you, Mikey. Just as he has done before. Poor old Jonathon... Well, it was bound to happen some point, wasn't it. Hurt something that belongs to Vincent and your just asking for trouble."</em></strong></p><p>
  <em> <strong>"Can you imagine just how unstoppable the two of them would be if they fought along side each other?" Shadow Freddy asked. "Just imagine it, dear Brother. The two of them working together side by side. Mikey's intelligence and Vinny's desires for murder. Can you imagine just how that would turn out?"</strong> </em>
</p><p><em><strong>"I can, Brother." </strong></em>Shadow Bonnie agreed.<em><strong> "Like Father, like son."</strong></em></p><p>Mike's arms dropped to his sides as he started walking backwards until hit the bookshelf behind him, hurting his back in the process. The pain didn't even registered as he went down on his knees and wrapped his arms around him. He was shaking badly. This... This wasn't happening. Did they really think he was like Vincent? The same Vincent who kidnapped and murdered little children. The same Vincent who lied to everybody, who kept lying and deceiving those around him. The same Vincent who kidnapped his own Son.</p><p>"N-no. Y-your wrong. I-I'm nothing like h-him." Mike muttered.</p><p><strong><em>"Really? You don't sound all that confidant."</em></strong> Shadow Freddy said mockingly. <strong><em>"What's the matter, little Mikey? Need Daddy to hold your hand, to comfort you, to get rid of all of your problems?"</em></strong></p><p><strong><em>"Speaking of problems." </em></strong>Shadow Bonnie piped up. <strong><em>"I think its funny hoe he tries to solve everybody else problems yet he cannot solve his problems. He has to get other people to do his dirty work him. And, he has issues with other people too."</em></strong></p><p><em><strong>"That's right. Let's start with poor Jeremy. Jeremy tried so, so hard to be there for him. Yet, Mikey kept pushing him away. What kind of friend does that to somebody who practically treats him him like a brother?"</strong></em> Shadow Freddy replied.</p><p><strong><em>"He doesn't deserve friends, does he? Jeremy, Matt, Kyle and Jack. They were pawns in his little game." </em></strong>The rabbit remarked. <em><strong>"They could do better without him. Everybody could do better without you. Your Uncle and Godfather must be embarrassed of you, clinging so hard to a murderer. And, Rachal and Aisha hates you. Things would have been so much better in the Thompson household if you behaved and stopped fighting with Jonathan. And, then there's your Mother. What would Samantha say if she found out how much pain you've caused to all of these people. All of this people who love and care for you, yet you throw it all back in their faces.</strong></em><em><strong>"</strong></em></p><p><strong><em>"He doesn't even deserve to be loved. He doesn't love Javier. He's been using him this entire time." </em></strong>The bear added<strong><em>. "He must be heartless after all."</em></strong></p><p>"Your wrong." Mike murmured. "I do love Javier."</p><p>The bear tsked. <strong><em>"You say you love him Yet, you've been causing him a great deal of pain this entire time. He had a brother, didn't he?"</em></strong></p><p>"C-Carlos Jones." The redhead whispered.</p><p><em><strong>"Exactly. I knew you remembered him. After all it was your Father who killed him. He got a little bit too close to finding out the truth. But Javier still stayed with you, didn't he? You knew what happened to his Brother yet he still stays with you." </strong></em>Shadow Freddy replied. <em><strong>"Why do you think he really stays with you, Mikey? He stays with you to make you feel guilty. Guilty because you could save his Brother. You could of found Vincent a long time ago. But you didn't. You could stopped all of this, Mikey. You're the one who he wants after all."</strong></em></p><p>"Stop it. Please. I can't... I can't do this." Mike whimpered as tears were coming out of his eyes. "I... I d-didn't k-know..."</p><p><strong><em>"Then why don't you go back to the people who really love you? Because, lets face it Mikey, nobody around here truly loves you. They don't care about you. They abandoned you. They didn't save you."</em></strong> Shadow Bonnie suggested. <strong><em>"And, once they found out what your planning, they will abandoned you again. What kind of person would want to defend a murderer?"</em></strong></p><p>"STOP IT! STOP IT! STOP IT!" Mike screamed.</p><p>
  <strong> <em>"ENOUGH!"</em> </strong>
</p><p>Goldie instantly appeared in the room and at the same time the door had been opened by Jeremy. He took one look at Mike and quickly ran towards him. He knelt down in front of him.</p><p>"Mike? Mike, its alright now. We're here." Jeremy said.</p><p><strong><em>"Well, well, well, now isn't this interesting. Its Goldie." </em></strong>Shadow Bonnie grinned.<strong><em> "Or, should we call you Gerald? I forget which one it is."</em></strong></p><p><em><strong>"Be quiet, and explain yourselves." </strong></em>Goldie growled.</p><p><em><strong>"Oh dear. He's angry with us." </strong></em>Shadow Freddy giggled.<em><strong> "Carefully, Brother, or he might just bit your face off. Just like he did to poor little ALE-"</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"I SAID ENOUGH!" </strong></em>Goldie roared<em><strong>.</strong></em></p><p>Shadow Freddy and Shadow Bonnie stopped giggling immediately. They weren't scared of the gold bear but they knew exactly what he was capable of, even in his current state.</p><p><strong><em>"Now then why have you two come here?" </em></strong>Goldie questioned<strong><em>.</em></strong></p><p><strong><em>"Well, why don't you asked Mikey? He knows who were are." </em></strong>Shadow Bonnie replied.</p><p><em><strong>"Mr Schmidt is in no condition to talk, thanks to your consent torment. That poor boy has been through enough already and you have the </strong></em><strong><em>audacity to bring up the past in order to torment him further." </em></strong>Goldie responded.<strong><em> "Do you honestly think he's like Vincent? Do you even know what happened to him?"</em></strong></p><p><em><strong>"Well, he is, isn't he?" </strong></em>Shadow Freddy answered.<em><strong> "They have both suffered greatly, wanted certain people dead, lied to the people around them about their true intensions."</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"Your wrong. He's nothing like him. They may share certain features, and they have been hurt by the people who are suppose to care for them, but that's about it. You don't know anything about the real Michael Schmidt" </strong></em>Goldie disagreed.</p><p><em><strong>"And you do?" </strong></em>Shadow Bonnie challenged. <em><strong>"You are a spirit, are you not? Bound to this place just like the other spirits. How exactly can you know about somebody when you haven't known them for long?"</strong></em></p><p>
  <em> <strong>"Perhaps not. But I know he has a good heart, that his intensions are pure." Goldie countered. "He has treated us better than those before him. He has restored this place from the ground up and we are making money again. We are his friends, not his playthings that can be abandoned willy-nilly."</strong> </em>
</p><p>The grin on the rabbit's face vanished. He exchanged a look with his ' Brother' before looking back at the golden bear. <em><strong>"You must of heard everything that happened in the room, no? You do realise that he has plans for this Vincent fellow?"</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"Many might not agree with his decisions, yet he has his reasons and for that we must respect them. True, I do not know what he is planning but I know Michael wouldn't want another person to suffer" </strong></em>Goldie responded. Before the shadow could speak again Goldie prevented him from speaking.<em><strong> "He has a right to be angry, and I'm not disavowing that. But, if you believe that Michael should use his anger in a violent situation, then I'm afraid you are wrong. There are other ways to deal with a person and I believe Michael would rather use one of those way instead of the violent one."</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"And how is he suppose to do that?" </strong></em>Shadow Freddy inquired. <em><strong>"Its not like he can defend himself..."</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"We will figure out a way to help him. He is not alone in this matter." </strong></em>Goldie replied. <em><strong>"As for you two. Why are you here? Were you sent by the Marionette or..."</strong></em></p><p><em><strong>"Oh, but were weren't sent by the Marionette, silly. And, we don't exactly know Vincent. We come and go as we please, answering to no one but our master. Perhaps you'll meet them some day." </strong></em>Shadow Bonnie interrupted.</p><p><em><strong>"Masters? Who are they then?" </strong></em>Goldie questioned.</p><p>But the shadow didn't answer, having vanished before Goldie could prevent them. The bear sighed as he turned to face the two night guards.</p><p>"<strong><em>How is he?" </em></strong>The golden bear asked.</p><p>"I... I don't know. He's not responding to me." Jeremy told him. "I'm wondering if we need to contact Javier. He seems to be the only who snap Mike out of this."<strong><em><br/></em></strong></p><p><strong><em>"Mr Jones is probably sleeping at this time of the night, and somebody needs to watch Emily." </em></strong>Goldie replied.<strong><em> "If Mike's able to walk we should take him downstairs. Freddy might be able to help us."</em></strong></p><p>Jeremy nodded. Goldie's right, they needed to take Mike downstairs and have him surrounded by people - or, in the this case, the animatronics. One of them needed to be in the building at all times, even though the brunette was pretty sure the animatronics could take care of themselves, so taking Mike home was a complete no-no. He knew Javier wouldn't mind waking up at ungodly hours if meant helping Mike. But, Emily's safety was highly important</p><p>"Mike, can you hear me?" Jeremy tried again. "They are gone now. There are not coming back."</p><p>"Y-yes. I... I can hear you." Mike whispered.</p><p>"We need to go downstairs. Are you capable of walking?" The brunette told him.</p><p>Mike nodded. "I-I think so. B-but I might need a little help."</p><p>"That's fine. We'll go slowly, alright?" Jeremy said.</p><p>He held out his hand for Mike to accept, though there a brief moment of hesitation before Mike accepted it. That was understandable. Mike didn't like asking for help and he didn't do it very often. It made him feel guilty about asking for help, he had years of not being able to ask for help. Jeremy helped the redhead to stand and together they left the room.</p><hr/><p>They had managed to make there way downstairs without any complications. Goldie and Freddy were already waiting for them, with the latter of the two sitting on stage. Goldie had told the other animatronics to search the building for those two shadows just in case they were hiding somewhere. There was no way he was going to allow Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy torment Mike further. If they were capable of doing so much damage to Mike - who was already hurting - than he didn't want to find out what they would do to Jeremy, the animatronics or anybody else for that matter.</p><p>What was really concerning was the information that they told him. They weren't in league with the Marionette, or Vincent for that, but apparently they had masters. Where did they come from than? Were they spirits of animatronics or something else entirely?</p><p>He turned to the show stage. Mike was currently sleeping next to Freddy. Jeremy told him that when things would get too much for Mike he would start to feel exhausted and he would need time to rest. That was fair seeing as his encounter with the two shadows was stressful, and had brought back a lot of painful memories. Jeremy decided to take a seat near the show stage so that he could keep an eye on Mike.</p><p>Bonnie was the first to come back, then foxy and finally Chica.</p><p>"We're finished, Goldie. They are nowhere to be seen." Chica said as soon as she entered the room.</p><p><strong><em>"Thank you, Chica." </em></strong>Goldie thanked.</p><p>"What's going on, Goldie?" Bonnie inquired. "We heard a thump and then Mike started screaming... We thought someone was attacking him."</p><p><strong><em>"He wasn't being attacked, but he wasn't alone in that room."</em></strong> Goldie replied. <strong><em>"He was talking to Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy."</em></strong></p><p>"Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy." Chica repeated, not liking the the names of the two shadows. They had the same names as her friends and, if Goldie was concerned about them, then Chica had feeling that they weren't to be trusted. "Who are they?"</p><p><strong><em>"Spirits, something from another world. I'm not entirely sure. But, there is one thing that am I certain of. Shadow Freddy looked like me only purple instead of gold, and Shadow Bonnie looked like our old friend Toy Bonnie." </em></strong>Goldie explained as best as he could. <strong><em>"I don't know why they decided to look like me or our friend.</em></strong></p><p><strong><em>"</em></strong>Urgh. Not that hunk of junk." Bonnie complained.</p><p>"Not now, Bonnie." Chica said warningly.</p><p>Jeremy decided to intervened before Bonnie and Chica started arguing again. "Do we know why they wanted?"</p><p><strong><em>"It's difficult to say, only because I don't exactly know what Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy want." </em></strong>Goldie admitted.<em><strong> "They were tormenting Michael. Most likely to make him feel guilty about what happened."</strong></em></p><p>"Guilty? What does he have to be guilty for." Foxy questioned.</p><p>"Anything involving Vincent mostly likely." Freddy said gently.</p><p>"But, Mike was eleven when that happened, and he must have been about seventeen when the other Pizzeria opened up." Jeremy pointed out. "He can't be blamed for what Vincent did. He had no idea of what Vincent did. And, lets not forget that this is the same Vincent who kidnapped his own Son."</p><p><em><strong>"True. But, they were mostly likely trying to make him feel guilty about not being able stopping Vincent. They probably believed Vincent did everything for Michael and not his Brother." </strong></em>Goldie replied. <strong><em>"If Mike had shown up sooner than he could of stopped Vincent from carrying out his evil deeds."</em></strong></p><p>"But, that's not fair on Mike. He had no idea this was happening. He had lost his memory. He had no idea where Vincent was" Bonnie protested. "How is he suppose to stop someone when he couldn't remember them in the first place?"</p><p>Bonnie had a point there, Jeremy thought. How exactly was Mike to blame for something that was out of his control? Was he meant to keep Vincent in check so that he couldn't carry out any more evil deeds. How was that fair on Mike? Was he suppose to give up on everything just to make one man happy? Did they know what he did to Mike a few months ago? Hadn't he suffered enough?</p><p>Jeremy felt like punching a wall, but he a took a few deep breaths to calm down. Now wasn't the time for him to loose his composure. Instead he recalled something interesting that happened in the archive room. Goldie was somewhat familiar with the two shadows. They even knew his other name.</p><p>"Goldie, when you were talking to Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy it sounded like you knew them from somewhere. They even knew about the kids spirits." The brunette recalled. "Have you seen them before?"</p><p><em><strong>"A few times. They tried the same tactics on me but they were unsuccessful." </strong></em>Goldie revealed.</p><p>"What happened?" Foxy asked.</p><p><strong><em>"I'd rather not say." </em></strong>Goldie said. <strong><em>"I have my memories as Gerald, but I also have Fredbear's memories. There was an incident that happened so many years ago. An incident... that should never have happened in the first place. It was a prank gone wrong and... I'd rather not get into it. All you need to know is that they tried to make me feel guilty for what happened."</em></strong></p><p>"Oh. I'm sorry, Goldie." Foxy apologised.</p><p><strong><em>"You didn't know." </em></strong>Goldie replied.</p><p>Freddy decided to change the subject. "So, what are we going to do then?"</p><p><strong><em>"I'm not sure. I was hoping to focus on finding the Toys at the moment but that might have to wait. In the mean time we should be prepare in case those shadows decided to come back" </em></strong>Goldie replied. <strong><em>"I might be able to drive them away but we should look into alternative methods on how to deal with them or something similar at least."</em></strong></p><p>"I'll leave a report on Scott's desk. He should heard about this." Jeremy said.</p><p><strong><em>"Good idea." </em></strong>Goldie agreed. <strong><em>"The rest of you can do whatever you want. We should enjoy the rest of the night. And Bonnie, Foxy if you two are going to do anything try not to make so much mess. We should allow Michael to rest."</em></strong></p><p>With that said, everybody went of to do their separate things. Jeremy went of to start working on his report. Chica decided to head into the kitchen and start preparing something, probably some sort of breakfast for Mike and Jeremy - she didn't always make pizzas and cupcakes, she made other things as well. Foxy and Bonnie decided to move into Pirates Cove, with a promise that they wouldn't get into too much trouble.</p><p>Goldie decided to do another check on the place just to make sure that the shadows were nowhere in sight, Freddy and Jeremy were down here so they could easily keep an eye on Mike. He also needed some time to gather his thoughts. He would never forgive Shadow Bonnie and Shadow Freddy for tormenting Mike, he definitely did not forgive them for bring up his past.</p><p>
  <em>Especially that name.</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Doubts and reassurance.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Mikey, please. Just let me explain."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He was sitting in the office, trying so hard to ignore him. Trying so hard to ignore his words, his </em>
  <em>pleading, his excuses. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have trusted him so easily?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent was pacing in front of him, probably trying to make up another excuse of his murderous past. He had encountered Vincent in the main party and he had quickly made his way to the security room. But, Vincent was quicker and he had managed to get inside the room before he could close the door. To his surprise Vincent had decided to not close either of the doors. Perhaps he was offering him away out should he needed it.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>But, would it be on his own terms or Vincent's?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Jeremy was right. He should never have come here. He had fallen into his trap and he had no way of escaping. He eyed the door connected to the west hall. That was always an option. But, would be quick enough to make an escape?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Mikey..."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Don't touch me!" Mike yelled as he shoved him back.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He hadn't meant to shove him so hard but he didn't want him to touch him again. He... he wouldn't allow that man to touch, to hug, to comfort him again. How dare he! How dare he try something like that. He murder those children. How can he act so normal and fatherly after he did something like that? What if he had been one of the kids at the Pizzeria? One of the children almost looked like him for goodness' sake.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent swallowed as he nodded his head. "Okay, okay. if that makes you more comfortable…"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Comfortable?" Mike questioned. "How can I be comfortable around you? I know what you did! I trusted you!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I... I know, and I'm sorry for breaking your trust Mikey. I should have never kept the truth from you." Vincent replied. "But, I guess I was afraid of what might happen if I told you the truth. I don't want to loose you again, Mikey."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Afraid? I don't believe you." Mike responded.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Well, what do you want me to say, Mikey? Because I am afraid. I'm afraid of loosing you again. Its... its just not fair, Mikey. Not fair on either of us. We haven't seen each other in thirteen years. Why are we always the ones who have to give up everything just because others don't want to see us be happy? Why are people so determined to drive us apart?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike lowered his head. He sounded... desperate. He couldn't imagine what he had been through for the past few years. Though, some part of him felt sorry for him, he was still felt conflicted. Part of him wanted to run, the other part of him wanted to stay and find out what really happened. But, would it be the entire truth or just another series of lies? How many lies had he covered up whilst he was staying with him. To be fair though Vincent didn't tell him any of this. He had find out for himself but that didn't make things any better.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Mikey..."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Yet, his stays. He stays sitting in that chair, still eyeing the door to his right. He should move. He should leave before Vincent does something to him. He knows about everything that Vincent did. Maybe... he had some sort of plan for him? Surely, he would do something to people who found out what he had done - he did the same to Javier's Brother, didn't he?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Yet, he doesn't get out of the chair. Its almost like he's afraid to.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Mikey... Look at me, please."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike turned to face him. He was on his left side, crouching down. </em>
  <em>He hadn't noticed him approaching him. </em>
  <em>He reached out to touch him, only to hesitate when he was about half way. He shook his head and pulled his hand back. Instead he placed his hand on top of Mike's.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I'm sorry, Mikey. I never meant for any of this to happen. Believe me when I say this, there is a reason for everything. It doesn't excuse what I have done but it was necessary for something I had to do."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike frowned. Necessary? What could be necessary about killing kids?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"What do you mean?" He asked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I needed blood for Alec. I couldn't just sit on the side-lines and wait for results from your Aunt so I had to take matters into my own hand." Vincent told him. "That's when I got the idea to use the Spring Bonnie suit to help me. Though, intentionally, I only wanted a blood sample from the kids. I even told them that and one of them, the redhead boy I believe, was willing to help me."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"But something went wrong." Mike said.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent nodded. "I was caught in a scuffle with one of the kids and I accidently slashed his face with the knife. In the end... I just panicked."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"And is that the truth?" Mike questioned.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"It is, especially that part concerning Alec - you can even ask Fran, Scott or even Alec himself about that." Vincent replied. "</em>
  <em>Again, it wasn't intentionally. I know I messed up and I would anything to fix what I've done."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike shook his head. No, there was no way he could fix any of this. </em>
  <em>How exactly do you make up for killing a group of children? </em>
  <em>What was done was done, there was no going back.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>But that didn't explain the rest.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And, if memory served him correct - which was debatable these days - all of these killings had happened at Freddy's locations. If he needed blood so badly then why not go to the hospital and get a donation from there? Why did it have to be at Freddy's? And, if it had been accidently as he says it was and only intended to get blood from the children, then why did he do the same at the 'New and improved' Freddy's? Then there was Carlos's accident. Toy Foxy had already been in disarray but he doubted that was enough to suddenly attack somebody.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Then there was Jonathan. His death was the most out of place out of all of them. He had been told that his death had been accidental, having fallen into one of the machines at the scrapyard. Mike had doubted that when he heard it from the police officer. Jonathan didn't drink alcohol very much, only on rare occasions and even then it wasn't enough to make him drunk in the first place, so it couldn't have been related to that.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Why did you kill Jonathan?" He asked.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I did it for you, Mikey. I couldn't allow that asshole to get away with what he has done." Vincent replied. "No one hurt's my family. No one."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"But there are other ways of getting justice." Mike protested. He felt sick to his stomach. "We could of gone to the police, I would of given them my statement and we have proof of what he has done to me. Aisha and Rachel could of gave their statements."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent snorted. "What, and possibly given him a chance to walk free? Absolutely not! He hurt the only other person I care about the most, there was no way I was going to allow him to carry on living after finding out what he did to you. You had bruises and cuts on your body. You almost bled to death because of him, Mikey. Do you honestly think I was going to stand by and do absolutely nothing?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Mike whimpered as the purple haired man stood up and went off into a rant. For a moment he wondered if Vincent was going to hurt him. He knew his anger wasn't directed at him but that didn't do anything to calm his nerves. There has been occasions where the man had expressed his frustration or his dislike for certain people - again, not directed at him - but he had never seen him so angry before.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Maybe he shouldn't of mentioned Jonathan's name in the first place. But, what else could he do? He agreed that Jonathan needed to be dealt with but not like this. He never wished death upon the man.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I..." Vincent blinked, instantly calming down when he realised what he had heard. He turned around. Mikey was cowering before him. "Oh, Mikey. I'm so, so sorry, cub. I didn't... I didn't mean to..."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He tried to reach out for him but Mike just jerked backwards, trying to put some distance between the two of them but he was unsuccessful. Vincent just lowered his arm and turned away. He felt defeated, heartbroken even. He never wanted this to happened. It was the last things he wanted and he had been scared by the outcome. He never wanted Mikey to be scared of him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And look what happened? The one person who was suppose to protect and care for him end up scaring him because of his past actions.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"What are you going to do to me?" Mike questioned.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"To you?" Vincent said as he turned around to face him again. "Nothing. I'm not going to hurt you, Mikey. I don't wish to bring you any sort of pain."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Then what are you going to do?" The redhead pressed him. "You must have something planned for those who find out your secrets."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Vincent opened his mouth but then he closed it again. He didn't know what to say, he had been even more taken back by Mikey's words. He didn't have anything planned for Mikey. The only thing he wanted more then anything in the world, more then closing down Fazbear Entertainment for good, was to bring him home. Its all he ever wanted, he was even more adamant about it after Mikey told him everything Jonathan did to him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>So why was it difficult to tell him that?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Because he knew he messed up. He never wanted any of this to happen. He had planned telling Mikey everything he had done though, originally, the thought never came to him having focusing on other stuff first instead of telling the truth. It was a stupid decision to make, and he knew he did more damage than good by not telling in sooner. But he had more important things on his mind at the moment and helping Mikey was one of them.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>All he wanted to do was to make him happy.</em>
</p><hr/><p>Mike sat alone his bedroom, he was hugging his knees as he staring at window. The last few hours were a blur to him, he vaguely remember coming home after his shift and heading to bed. The events that happened last night were still fresh in his mind. A lot of painful memories came rushing back to him and, once again, he was doubting himself.</p><p>He was doubting everything he had done. He couldn't help but wonder if he did the right thing in the first place. Sure, Vincent was exposed for what he is but did that make things any better? It didn't make any of their problems go away. It just made everything worse.</p><p>He was starting to wonder now if the reoccurring dreams kept coming back to him as a means to make him feel guilty about his actions. As unfair as it was, because he didn't have his memories at the time, he was the only one who could stopped all of this. He could of prevented it all from happening in the first place. Maybe Vincent wouldn't be looking for him if he was living with him in the first place. If he had accepted Vincent's offer and left with him maybe he wouldn't be subjecting himself</p><p>And, now that he thought about it, the two shadows were right. He fixes everybody else's problems but not his own. But what could he have done about it? Jonathan had practically treated him as his own personal punching bag and never told him the reason as to why he acted the way he did. When Mr Johnson was in charge of Freddy's he had fired him on the spot, without bothering to hear him out. His friendship with Jeremy failed because he couldn't tell him about the abuse.</p><p>He keeps pushing people away the people who wanted to help him and keeps bring in the bad people who hurt him.</p><p>"Maybe everything would go back to normal if I just left..." He muttered.</p><p>"No. Of course not. Don't say things like that, Miguel."</p><p>He turned to the door, he didn't even notice it opening in the first place. Javier was standing at the threshold. His mouth was opened slightly and his eyes were widen Mike felt his heart ache, having forced himself to look away from the brunette. He felt guilty for making Javier upset. He never wanted to cause him any the words of the shadows came back to haunt him. <em>He stays with you to make you feel guilty. Guilty because you could of save his Brother.</em></p><p>"Hey, Javi." Mike greeted.</p><p>"Hola querido" Javier replied.</p><p>The brunette walked up to him. Mike was sitting on the side closets to the window so Javier sat down on the available space provided. Neither one of them said anything to each other. Mike still couldn't look at him, the guilt kept gnawing at him at every passing second. It was his fault again. He said something he hadn't meant to say out lowed, he didn't think Javier was close enough to hear him. Javier deserved better. He deserved someone who was confident, a fighter, someone who wasn't afraid of getting their hands dirty. Not some who was a coward, who was a cry baby, who was scared of a murderer even though he was his Father and he couldn't hate him despite the fact that kidnapped him.</p><p>And, as for Javier himself he doesn't know where to start. Sure, Mike had little moments where he was questioning himself but he never stated anything like this before. He knew it had nothing to do with him or there close knit circle. He did, however, knew it was something to do with certain purple haired man. He knew Mike, and he couldn't blame for thinking about him - sometimes the thoughts just came to him and couldn't control his conflicted feelings.</p><p>So, instead of asking him the obvious, he asked him about something else. "How are you feeling?"</p><p>"I feel... terrible. And. awful. And exposed. And vulnerable. And sick" Mike replied. "There's just... too much going on at once."</p><p>"Well, lets go slowly then." Javier suggested. "Did something happened last night? You look awfully pale."</p><p>"I... I think so. I don't really remember, last night was a blur." The redhead replied.</p><p>If... If that's the case then something must have happened last night, Javier thought. But, the question is, what exactly happened. If Mike didn't remember what happened then perhaps Jeremy did - He was at the Pizzeria last night, wasn't he? He better be. He was the only one with answers at the moment, unless Mike remembered something.</p><p>He could always asked the animatronics about it... Except he was very mindful when it comes to any of the animatronics. He had nothing against the the quartet, and Goldie for that matter, and he knew they were just as protective of Mike as he was. But it just never felt right to be in the same room as them.</p><p>"Why do you love me?"</p><p><em>What? </em>He turned to the redhead, his mouth was hanging open again. Did... Did he just hear that right? Was Mike really asking him why he loved him?</p><p>"Miguel... I don't understand..."</p><p>"Is it because your making me feel guilty about Carlos's death?" The redhead pressed him. "Tell me, Javier, because I don't think I can take one more heartbreak."</p><p><em>Heartbreak. His brother. </em><em>Guilty.</em> Who were putting these idea's in his head? Who was trying to make him feel guilty for something he had no involvement in? Mike was nowhere near the Pizzeria when the incident happened. Mike was not responsible for what happened to his brother.</p><p>Javier shook his head, but he doubted that would be enough to satisfy Mike. Though, why would he needed to be satisfied in the first place he didn't know. He definitely loved him. His loved his eyes, his smiles that he shows rarely. So, either somebody was trying to drive them apart or Mike really was doubting their relationship.</p><p>Unless... he needed reassurance because somebody was trying to drag him down whilst creating a twisted version of events that make it seem like he wasn't worthy of any sort of love or friendship. They probably thought that, if they managed to break him down to his lowest point, then he would end up doing something stupid. Something that even Javier didn't even want to think about.</p><p>But Mike deserved better. He deserved to be loved and to be comforted. He deserved the option to chose whatever made him happy. He deserved to have his voice heard and to make his own decisions. He deserved to be happy.</p><p>Javier moved himself so that he was sitting next to Mike. He moved the redhead closer to him and rested Mike's head on his shoulder. His laced his right hand with Mike's left.</p><p>"I love you because you make me happy." Javier told him. "The days before I met you were filled with so much sadness because my brother was gone and I was never going to get him back. I blamed everyone, including myself, for not going better. For not being able to prevent his accident But, I never once blamed you for what happened. How could I blame you for something you weren't aware about or had any involvement in?"</p><p>"But I could of stopped all of this from happening." The redhead protested. "If I had left with Vincent..."</p><p>"Miguel, would you have been happy if you were living with him?" Javier questioned.</p><p>"I..." Mike stops himself. Considering what happened last, no, he wouldn't be happy. But if it meant that nobody had to suffer because Vincent was happy then, as much as it would pain him, then he knew he had no choice in the matter. He didn't want anyone else to suffer because of his selfishness. "No. But, I would do it to protect everybody else."</p><p>"Doesn't your own happiness come first?" The brunette inquired.</p><p>Mike went to open his mouth but no words were coming out, forcing him to close it again. There was no point protesting - despite the fact that he was going to tell him that as long as everybody was safe, that's all that really mattered to him. He knew Javier was right. His own happiness did come first but nobody ever considered it before. Because nobody ever asked him what him wanted. People were always making decisions for him. They always did what they thought was best for him. He knew it was all for his safety but they could of at least told him the reason why they were making these decisions in the first place.</p><p>So far only Jeremy had corrected that mistake. He still needed to have a conversation with Uncle Fran and Aisha.</p><p>"No. It never did." Mike said. "I've always been around people who make me happy but I could never be truly happy on my own."</p><p>"I'm guessing Rachel was the only exception." Javier commented.</p><p>"Yeah. I practically had nobody expect for her so, even though I didn't know it at the time, she was like family to me. But, because I was surrounded by so much negativity and stress that I could never be happy." The redhead replied. "I'm just tired, Javi. Tired of feeing like this. Tired of people keeping secrets from me. Tired of all of this. Tired of people not asking me what I want. I want to do better. I want to protect the people around me but I don't know what to do."</p><p>"Focus on what makes you happy. You don't need to please the people around you. You don't need to sacrifice yourself for the rest of us. Its not fair on you to give up on everything for one man." Javier said. "Your not weak, Mi amour. Just misguided. You need something or someone to guide you in the right direction and that someone could be us. You don't have to face this alone. Please, Michael, let us help you."</p><p>Mike felt his cheeks warm up. He removed his head from the brunette's shoulder's so that he could look at him. Javier smiled at him, that alone told him that he hadn't mistaken what he heard. He said his name. He said His name!</p><p>"Y-you said my name. You didn't call me Miguel." Mike said.</p><p>Javier chuckled. "Surprised? I didn't even think you minded when I started calling you by your Spanish name."</p><p>"A little. I never did, not one bit. I actually liked it. It felt different, like we had something that nobody else had. We could have private conversation without anybody else interfering. And you never said it out of malicious either. It was just... you being affectionate."</p><p>"Me? I'm always affectionate" Javier remarked.</p><p>Mike merely chuckled in response. He could always count on Javier to lighten the mood. Although, he knew it couldn't go on forever. It was only temporary and he wanted to talk about what happened last night. The night was still hazy to him but he could remember a few things that happened. Besides Javier deserved to know the reason as to why he doubted their love.</p><p>"Last night there were these two shadows. I'm not really sure what they are or where they come from but they looked like a bear and a rabbit. They were saying all sorts of things about me. Trying to make to make me feel guilty about a lot of things, saying that it was all my fault that everything happened in the past. "The redhead revealed. "Saying that... you were only staying with me because of Carlos's death, that you were making me guilty because I could of prevented it. That... you didn't really love me."</p><p><em>Ah! So, that was it. </em>"Nothing they say will ever stop me from loving you." He brought Mike's hand closer to him and planted a kiss on his knuckles. "And, I do love you, Miguel."</p><p>"I love you two, Captain." Mike said..</p><p>"Captain, eh? That's a new one." The brunette cooed.</p><p>"Like it? Your always saying affection words towards me so I decided to return the favour." Mike replied.</p><p>"I love it." Javier said.</p><p>Unfortunately, the little interruption didn't last long. Javier wanted to know more about the night before.</p><p>"So, about these two shadows, since you don't know where they came from but you do know that they were trying to make you feel guilty about everything, do you have any idea who sent them? We might be able to figure something out based of that." Javier questioned.</p><p>"Not really. I sort of... blanked out after a while. They really did a number on me." Mike replied. "Although, they did talk about Vincent a lot. I... don't think he sent them though, unless he's dealing with black magic and demons now."</p><p>"That... Well, actually, that would be a rather interesting story." Javier said.</p><p>"Probably. I mean it wouldn't surprise me if he into that sort of thing right now. It would be a interesting turn of events. Interesting but highly unlikely." Mike replied.</p><p>"Is that's all you remember?" Javier questioned.</p><p>"Yeah. I'm guessing Jeremy or Goldie would know more." Mike replied before sighed. "I wish I was more helpful."</p><p>"You are, mi querido. In more ways then one." The brunette insisted.</p><p>"Thank you, Captain." Mike thanked.</p><p>He removed the covers and got out of bed. He walked over to the wardrobe. He needed to get ready for the day and he did promise Emily that he would take her Pizzeria, and there was no doubt in his mind that Scott wanted to talk to him.</p><p>Speaking of Scott...</p><p>"Oh. There was something else." Mike said. "Jeremy told me Scott's working on something. He wants to have some sort of base of operations for us to use. Jeremy thinks he wants to fight back against Fazbear Entertainment."</p><p>"Really? That sounds interesting." Javier replied. "Wouldn't surprise me if he did. Something needs to happen with that company. Its corrupt and neglectful. They could of prevented the children's death, or done something to prevent them from being kidnapped in the first place."</p><p>"They could of been more corporative with the police. Maybe if they had found the bodies sooner then the Marionette wouldn't have been able to trap their spirits inside the animatronics. A lot of things could of been prevented if that never happened. "Mike added. "But, you know just like everything else, sweep it under the rug its probably fine."</p><p>"If that's the case then it needs new management." Javier commented.</p><p>Mike didn't reply to him, he just hummed in response as he pulled out some clothes. He's right, Fazbear Entertainment did need new management. It needed someone who would listen to there employees. It needed someone who actually committed to the safety of the children and the adults. It needed someone to take charge and start making changes to the Pizzeria's.</p><p>Changes that would be reasonable and better for everyone.</p>
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